[NatureNS] Butterfly pic with ant on the wing

Date: Mon, 04 Jun 2012 16:50:52 -0300
From: "Stephen R. Shaw" <srshaw@Dal.Ca>
To: naturens@chebucto.ns.ca
References: <COL103-W356309F639A4403BBB576EB50F0@phx.gbl>
User-Agent: Internet Messaging Program (IMP) H3 (4.3.4)
Precedence: bulk
Return-Path: <naturens-mml-owner@chebucto.ns.ca>
Original-Recipient: rfc822;"| (cd /csuite/info/Environment/FNSN/MList; /csuite/lib/arch2html)"

next message in archive
next message in thread
previous message in archive
previous message in thread
Index of Subjects

Index of Subjects
Hi Bev, others:
What is so attractive about unopened 'peony' heads (spelling? -  
'peonies' was what I was told they were, verbally)?  I was recently in  
the country just south of Montreal and in a row of maybe 30 unopened  
heads on healthy plants, all were rife with highly active small sepsid  
flies (wing-wavers), which were being chased around both by small  
ants, and by some that were carpenter ant size. A few large visiting  
hornets were also being seen off by the larger ants.

What are they all attracted to, or protecting?  I looked for aphids  
that might be being herded, but didn't see any.  A few heads nearby  
had opened recently but these new flowers seemed to have much less  
traffic.
Steve (Halifax)

Quoting Bev Wigney <bkwigney@gmail.com>:
> On 2012-06-04, at 2:39 PM, James Hirtle <jrhbirder@hotmail.com> wrote:
>> I took a photograph of a Canadian Tiger Swallowtail on Sunday near  
>> Summerville for the atlas.  When I downloaded the photo, I was  
>> surprised that I had captured an ant crawling on the wing.
>
> It may be a little early for peonias to be in bloom, but I have  
> often watched ants practically fling themselves upon any insect that  
> crawls onto or perches on "their" plant  - the leaves or the  
> flowers.   I would expect that flying insects occasionally carry off  
> a hitchhiker due to this hostile behaviour.
>
> Bev Wigney
> Round Hill, NS


next message in archive
next message in thread
previous message in archive
previous message in thread
Index of Subjects