Pachycondyla castaneicolor
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| Pachycondyla castaneicolor (Dalla Torre, 1893) |
Pachycondyla castaneicolor is an ant of the family Formicidae, endemic to the North Island, and the north and north west of the the South Island, of New Zealand. It is found in open habitats (e.g. roadsides, pastures, domestic vegetable gardens), in soil under stones or in rotting logs.
The mandibles are triangular with numerous small teeth (about 10) along the inner margins, and touch the front of the clypeus when closed. Length of the worker ant is 5.5 to 6.4 mm. The antennae has 12 segments. Coloration is uniformly yellowish to orange brown.
The queens are winged, unlike the other endemic Ponerinae species Pachycondyla castanea which has wingless and worker-like queens. Pachycondyla castaneicolor is highly predatory, using an effective sting to immobilise prey. They are commonly encountered in gardens, where they have been reported stinging people when the nests are disturbed.
Workers are very timid, disappearing rapidly into their nest galleries when disturbed. Colonies are modest in size (probably in the tens rather than hundreds).
