Got this shot out in west Texas a couple days ago. It’s a Pogonomyrmex harvester ant sprinting across a sand dune carrying one of her nestmate sisters. The carried ant curls into a stereotypical pupal position to be easier to transport.
#Ants #Insects #Deserts #Pogonomyrmex
deserts
For those who know anything about ants, here's a weird one: Lasius xerophilus.
Most Lasius species live in north temperate/boreal forests. This one? Sand dunes in North American deserts. A total oddball, and unexpected, living alongside classic desert species like Pogonomyrmex harvester ants.
Photographed at Monahans Sand Dunes, Texas.