Oecophylla smaragdina (Fabricius, 1775)

Description

Size: 5–10 mm

Locality Map

General Biology

This is a large and aggressive ant  that build complex nests in trees, using living leaves. The leaves are brought together by chains of worker ants. When the edges of the leaves are in place, another worker ant squeezes a larva to encourage it to produce silk from its special glands. The silk is used to glue the leaves together. Their colonies are usually made up of several nests, spread over a few adjacent trees. The queen is located in one of these nests. 

Kerengga ants are often found near trees such as the Sea Hibiscus (Talipariti tiliaceum) and the great morinda (Morinda citrofolia), which both attract the ants with nectar, in return for some protection from herbivores. Weaver ants do not have a sting but are capable of inflicting a very painful bite, enhanced by chemicals (e.g.e.g., formic acid) secreted from their abdomen

Diet

Kerengga ants eat almost any small animals.

References

Holldobler, B. and E.O. Wilson 1990. The Ants. Belknap Press of the Harvard University Press, Cambridge, Mass. 732 pp.

Woo, P.M.H., Y.W. Jong, T. Lim & W.K. Soo, 2011. Ants. Pp 225–227. In: Ng, P. K. L., R. T. Corlett & H. T. W. Tan (editors), Singapore Biodiversity. An Encyclopedia of the Natural Environment and Sustainable Development, Editions Didier Millet, Singapore, 552 pp.

Habitats

• Coastal Forest
  
• Open Country
  
• Park/Garden
  
• Mangrove Forest
  
• Plantation
  
• Rural area/Kampong
  
• Secondary Forest
  
• Woodland
  
• Road & Other Urban Area
  
• Reclaimed land
  

Related Places

• Admiralty Park
  
• Bedok Reservoir
  
• Berlayer Creek
  
• Bishan-Ang Mo Kio Park
  
• Bukit Batok Nature Park
  
• Bukit Timah Nature Reserve
  
• Central Catchment Nature Reserve
  
• Changi Beach Park
  
• Changi Point Coastal Walk
  
• Changi Village
  
• Changi Walking Trail
  
• Chinese Garden
  
• East Coast Park
  
• Fort Canning Park
  
• Gangsa Track
  
• Hindhede Nature Park
  
• Holland Woods
  
• Kent Ridge Park
  
• Khatib Bongsu
  
• Kusu Island
  
• Labrador Nature Reserve
  
• Lazarus Island
  
• Lim Chu Kang
  
• Lorong Halus
  
• Lower Peirce Reservoir
  
• MacRitchie Reservoir
  
• Mandai Mangrove
  
• Mandai Track 15
  
• Marina Barrage
  
• Marina East
  
• Mount Faber
  
• Pasir Ris Park
  
• Pulau Hantu
  
• Pulau Semakau
  
• Pulau Tekong
  
• Pulau Ubin
  
• Punggol Park
  
• Rifle Range Road
  
• Sarimbun
  
• Sembawang Park
  
• Sengkang Riverside Park
  
• Sentosa
  
• Singapore Botanic Gardens
  
• Southern Ridges
  
• St John's Island
  
• Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve
  
• Sungei Pandan
  
• Tampines Eco Green
  
• Tanah Merah
  
• Tree Top Walk
  
• Venus Drive
  
• West Coast Park
  
• Woodlands Town Garden