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24 May 2021 Nocturnal Foraging by Ants at a Sandstone Bee Nest Aggregation (Hymenoptera: Apidae and Formicidae)
Michael C. Orr, Michael G. Branstetter
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Abstract

Ants are immensely important predators in terrestrial ecosystems but surprisingly little is reported on their role in bee predation. Here, we describe the ant Pogonomyrmex subnitidus Emery, 1895 foraging at a bee nest aggregation in Utah. Many instances were observed of P. subnitidus, and another ant, Pheidole clydeiGregg, 1950, scavenging on the nests of the recently-described bee Anthophora puebloOrr, 2016, which nests in sandstone. One worker ant of P. subnitidus was also observed taking a live bee larva back to its nest, indicating that the ants occasionally act as predators. The existence of nocturnal foraging in P. subntidus demonstrates greater temporal foraging plasticity than prior reports of bimodal foraging strategy during the day. Potential drivers of this behavior and the relation of these two new ant associates to the bees are discussed.

© 2020 Kansas Entomological Society
Michael C. Orr and Michael G. Branstetter "Nocturnal Foraging by Ants at a Sandstone Bee Nest Aggregation (Hymenoptera: Apidae and Formicidae)," Journal of the Kansas Entomological Society 93(2), 169-175, (24 May 2021). https://doi.org/10.2317/0022-8567-93.2.169
Received: 27 May 2020; Accepted: 17 June 2020; Published: 24 May 2021
KEYWORDS
Anthophora
bee nesting
foraging behavior
nesting biology
Pheidole
Pogonomyrmex
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