Camponotus Vagus

Camponotus vagus is a species that is relative distinctive and it is easily identified by its huge and large size, the black colour that is uniform, and also its body air’ that is dense and long on its entire exoskeleton. The individuals of eusocial insects allometric variation in size that is continuous and morphology that helps in facilitating the allocation of tasks and the partitioning of work. The workers of Camponotus species are six to twelve millimetres in length. The major workers’ who are large act as the guards who defend their colony and also protects the inner workers’ who are smaller. This actually happens whenever all the worker ants go to forage outside the nests. The mandibles of the major workers which are very powerful have the capability of decapitating arthropods which are smaller and have been captured as food, and also they dismember the smaller ants that are from other species. The sculpture of Camponotus vagus species is transverse finely and closely punctured, obscured by pubescence that is long and thick. In southern France, the Camponotus species are a host to Microselia Southwood, which is a phorid fly.

Camponotus vagus species is prevalent especially in Central Europe, although it has a range that is overall from southern Scandinavia to the north-western part of Africa, and also from Portugal to Mongolia in Altai. The evidence of Camponotus species in Northern Europe is both scattered and isolated.

The small colonies of Camponotus vagus species are not that active. Whenever a workers leave the nests, there are high chances of them not returning back, and this creates a very huge and big loss to the whole colony, by considering how eventually the Camponotus species has a very long time of development due to their large sizes. Camponotus vagus is an active species that is greatly aggressive. They bite freely when they are disturbed. The males have slender mandibles with only an apical tooth.

Camponotus Vagus Habitation

The colonies of this ant species are commonly found in habitats that are dry, especially forests that are open and forest edges. Most of the time they build their nests in woods that are dry. The colonies at times may be founded under the stones. A colony that is average has about one thousand to four thousand workers, but colonies that are large contain individuals(workers) who are up to ten thousand. The Camponotus species mostly inhabits forests that are warm as well as pine forests that are dry, preferring clearings and places which are open. The Camponotus vagus species build their nests mostly in trees that are dead and wood stumps.

The Diet of The Camponotus Vagus Species

Camponotus vagus species has been known to be both aphidicolous( living in a relationship that is mutualistic with aphids and they feed on the honeydew which is released from the terminations of the insects’ alimentary canal), and carnivorous. Because aphids help the ants with honeydew, the ant colony returns the favour by protecting the aphids from other predators. Camponotus Vagus also feed on insects and honey water.

Camponotus Vegus Habits

The Camponotus species are very much aggressive and they also show fast recruitment to other places of feeding. They mostly do their mating-flight on warmer days, especially in the afternoon.