Podzol ant

Podzol ant, also called podzol mound ant, occurs in two unconnected areas of North America. The eastern range is the northern United States and southern Canada west to Minnesota and south to Ohio. The western range is the mountainous west from Alaska and northern Canada to northern Mexico. It is found mostly in cold coniferous forests.

Workers are ⅛″ to 5 ⁄16″ (4 to 8 mm) long, black, and somewhat shiny. Winged males and queens are about the same size, 3 ⁄16″ to ½″ (5 to 13 mm) long.

The head is broadly rounded in outline. The rear margin is rounded, not distinctly concave. The eyes are large. The facial plate above the mouth (clypeus) is not notched. The finger-like sensory mouth part (maxillary palp) is long and has six segments. The basal segment of each antenna (scape) is long, but is shorter than the length of the head.

The first body segment behind the head (mesosoma) has two distinct elevated areas (bumps). It is covered with three exoskeletal plates, the pronotum and mesonotum covering the thorax, and the propodeum covering the first segment of the abdomen that is fused to the thorax. The pronotum and mesonotum form one smooth convex bump, the propodeum a second convex bump. The second abdominal segment (petiole) is narrow and waist-like, and has a single raised bump (node). The remainder of the abdomen (gaster) is bulbous. The head, mesosoma, legs, and first three segments of the gaster are covered with silvery appressed hairs. The fourth segment of the gaster is bare or almost bare. There are single rows of erect golden hairs at the end of each segment. On the first segment there are also usually 10 to 25, sometimes just 1 to 3, erect hairs not including the row at the end. Those are each shorter than or equal to the distance between them.

Worker: ⅛″ to 5 ⁄16″ (4 to 8 mm)

Male: 3 ⁄16″ to ½″ (5 to 13 mm)

Queen: 3 ⁄16″ to ½″ (5 to 13 mm)

Cold coniferous forests

Podzol ant builds large mounds in the acidic, infertile soil of coniferous and boreal forests. The mounds stand out from the surrounding forest because they are covered with pale, acid-bleached subsoil.

Fusca-group Ants (Formicidae: Formica podzolica) Wresting with a Leaf
Carl Barrentine

Fusca-group Ants (Formicidae: Formica podzolica) on Soil-turned Mound
Carl Barrentine