Similar Yellow Pennant Ant
Tetramorium simillimum
Species Info General
Other common names include: Groove-headed Fierce Ant, Similar Groove-headed Ant
This is a relatively common ant in the islands. Its small size and yellowish-red coloration make it commonly mistaken for Little Fire Ants. It is not at all aggressive towards humans however. This ant is well-adapted to Hawaiʻi and can be found nearly everywhere. Huddleston & Fluker (1968), in their report on Hawaiʻi’s ants, stated that it is “Extremely widely distributed and common to abundant over most of its range. Nests in many varied sites.” This ant is one of a pair of very similar-looking species, the other being the Confusing Yellow Pennant Ant (Tetramorium caldarium). This ant is well-known as a “tramp species” that has spread from its native Africa to most of the world’s tropical and sub-tropical countries, including most every island in the South Pacific. Still, not a lot is known about its habits and impacts.
Identification/Description
The lemon-yellow gaster of this ant gives it a bright appearance, contrasting with the darker gaster and appearance of the very similar Confusing Yellow Pennant Ant (Tetramorium caldarium). Overall it has a reddish-yellow coloration and is quite small, though it’s a little bit larger than a Little Fire Ant. Its movements are a little bit sluggish compared to many of our other common ants.
Impacts
- Smith (1936) wrote “The workers are thought to be highly predacious, although they attend honeydew-excreting insects to some extent.”
History
- This ant was known to be present on Oʻahu perhaps as early as around 1900 (Swezey 1931), but wasn’t noticed on any of the outer islands until the 1960s. The first record for Maui was 1967, followed by Lānaʻi in 1968 and Molokaʻi in 1977. It was first detected on Kahoʻolawe in 2003.
Resources/References
- Tetramorium simillimum – AntWiki
- Huddleston, E. W. & Fluker, S. S. 1968. Distribution of Ant Species of Hawaii. Proceedings of the Hawaiian Entomological Society 20(1): 45–69.
- Smith, M. R. 1936. The Ants of Puerto Rico. The Journal of Agriculture of the University of Puerto Rico 20(4): 819–875.
- Swezey, O. H. 1931. [Notes & Exhibitions]. Tetramorium simillimum (Smith). Proceedings of the Hawaiian Entomological Society 7(3): 381.
