Wood Ants

The day has had it's heavy showers and some nasty gusts of wind, however, the sun did come out for a while this afternoon. Jim turned up, so we went to have a look at the ants nest, Formica rufa which I blipped a while back.

We found the original nest, very active, repaired and complete with a pile of Woodpecker dropping at the base of the tree. The bird must frequent the nest very regularly and I might go up without the dogs one morning and see if I can get a shot of it raiding the mound.

A walk around the surrounding woodland found a healthy population of nests and the ground throughout almost the entire walk was carpeted with ants.

The light wasn't good enough to get any good photo's, so I found a jar someone had discarded and put a few in to bring home. When threatened the ants rear up, bend their abdomens up between their legs and squirt formic acid in the direction of the threat. The odour, which is already noticeable in the open air, was a stink by the time I opened the jar in the kitchen. I've only had time to do a not too artistic shot, but will try to get something better tomorrow.

Meanwhile the ants are in a warm place, as they have nowhere to hide, and away from my nose.