Critter Catalog

What do they look like?

False honey ants workers are 2.5-3.5 millimeters long. Queens are about 8 millimeters long and males are 3-4 millimeters long. They are light to dark brown colored. Queens are reddish-brown and males are black in color. The head and abdomen are often darker than the midsection. Their bodies are shaped like an hourglass. Reproductive ants have wings. (McLeod, 2014)

Eggs are small, white, and shaped like tubes. Larvae look like maggots. They are small, curved, and covered in hairs. (Williams and Lucky, 2020)

• Other Physical Features
• ectothermic
• bilateral symmetry

• Sexual Dimorphism
• female larger

• Range length

  2.5 to 8 mm

  0.10 to 0.31 in

• Range wingspan

  2.5 to 8 mm

  0.10 to 0.31 in

Where do they live?

Prenolepis imparis, commonly known as false honey ants, are found across most of the United States. Their range stretches from southern Ontario in the North to Mexico in the South. False honey ants are native to this range. (McLeod, 2014)

• Biogeographic Regions
• nearctic
  • native

What kind of habitat do they need?

False honey ants live in wooded areas, under logs and rocks, and in shady areas near the bottoms of trees. They may live in soil that contains clay or sand. Workers build nests deep underground. The nests have many dead-end tunnels and can stretch 3.6 meters (11.8 feet) underground. The nests may be so deep so that the ants may stay cool. The nests in Florida are deeper than those in the northern parts of their range. (McLeod, 2014; Tschinkel, 1987)

• These animals are found in the following types of habitat
• temperate

• Terrestrial Biomes
• savanna or grassland
• chaparral
• forest

• Range depth

  2.5 to 3.6 m

  8.20 to 11.81 ft

How do they grow?

False honey ants grow from egg to larvae, to pupa, and then to adult. Like other ants, false honey ants undergo complete metamorphosis. This means that the adults are very different from the larvae. (Williams and Lucky, 2020)

• Development - Life Cycle
• metamorphosis

How do they reproduce?

Male false honey ants mate with multiple females. All queens lay eggs. This species is the first North American species of ant to form a mating swarm in the spring. (Williams and Lucky, 2020)

• Mating System
• polygynous

In late August to September, queen false honey ants lay a single batch of eggs. The eggs contain workers and reproductive ants. After waiting out the cold season, the reproductives will leave the colony in early spring for their mating flight. The reproductives form mating swarms. Swarms tend to gather on vegetation and on the trunks of trees. (Williams and Lucky, 2020)

• Key Reproductive Features
• seasonal breeding
• sexual
• oviparous

• How often does reproduction occur?

  False honey ants breed yearly.

• Breeding season

  False honey ants breed in the spring.

False honey ants use female reproductive care. (Williams and Lucky, 2020)

• Parental Investment
• female parental care

How long do they live?

Workers live for 1-2 years. Colonies can contain from 560-10,000 workers. Colonies last from 7 to 9 years. (Tschinkel, 1987)

• Range lifespan
  Status: wild

  1 to 2 years

How do they behave?

False honey ants are suited for foraging in cold temperatures. They forage at temperatures between 45° and 60°F. They may be found gathering food at near-freezing temperatures. During the warmer months, they will close off the entrance to the nest and become dormant. They will not leave the nest until the temperatures lower again. Depending on where they live, their active period changes. In the southern parts of their range, they are active between November and early April. False honey ants that live near the northern parts of their range are active all year, except for the summer months. (McLeod, 2014; Williams and Lucky, 2020)

Reproductive false honey ants are able to fly. Once a food source has been found, workers will move out and defend it from predators. They live in colonies of up to 560-10,000 workers. (McLeod, 2014; Tschinkel, 1987)

• Key Behaviors
• flies
• sedentary
• aestivation
• colonial

How do they communicate with each other?

Not much information is known about the communication and perception of false honey ants. They likely use tactile, visual, and chemical channels of perception. Tactile, visual, and chemical methods of communication are possible.

• Communication Channels
• visual
• tactile
• chemical

• Perception Channels
• visual
• tactile
• chemical

What do they eat?

False honey ants are omnivores that like diets with a lot of proteins and fats. They eat a large variety of foods. Workers eat flowers that drip sap, honeydew, rotting fruit, and waste from galls, earthworms, and arthropods. (McLeod, 2014; Williams and Lucky, 2020)

• Primary Diet
• omnivore

• Animal Foods
• carrion
• insects
• terrestrial non-insect arthropods

• Plant Foods
• fruit

• Foraging Behavior
• stores or caches food

What eats them and how do they avoid being eaten?

No information about predators was found.

What roles do they have in the ecosystem?

False honey ants cause soil to aerate when they build their nests. This means that they dig and break up the soil, which allows air and water to get in. They consume flowers that drip sap, honeydew, rotting fruit, and waste from galls, earthworms, and arthropods. (McLeod, 2014; Williams and Lucky, 2020)

• Ecosystem Impact
• soil aeration

Do they cause problems?

False honey ants are not a pest species, but they may enter buildings. (Williams and Lucky, 2020)

How do they interact with us?

False honey ants do not have any positive economic impacts.

Are they endangered?

• IUCN Red List

  No special status

• US Federal List

  No special status

• CITES

  No special status

• State of Michigan List

  No special status

Some more information...

Prenolepis imparis are known as small honey ants, false honey ants, or native winter ants. (Williams and Lucky, 2020)

Contributors

Deena Hauze (author), Animal Diversity Web Staff.

References

McLeod, R. 2014. "Species Prenolepis imparis - False Honey Ant" (On-line). Bug Guide. Accessed July 10, 2020 at https://bugguide.net/node/view/27323.

Talbot, M. 1943. Population studies of the ant, Prenolepis imparis (Say). Ecology, 24(1): 31-44. Accessed July 12, 2020 at https://www-jstor-org.ezproxy2.library.colostate.edu/stable/1929858.

Tschinkel, W. 1987. Seasonal life history and nest architecture of a winter-active ant,Prenolepis imparis. Insectes Sociaux, 34: 143–164. Accessed July 10, 2020 at https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02224081.

Wheeler, W. 1930. The Ant Prenolepis Imparis (Say.). Annals of the Entomological Society of America, 23(1): 1-26. Accessed July 12, 2020 at https://antwiki.org/wiki/images/3/38/WheelerW1930h.pdf.

Williams, J., A. Lucky. 2020. "Common name: winter ant, false honey ant" (On-line). Featured Creatures Entomology & Nematology. Accessed July 10, 2020 at http://entnemdept.ufl.edu/creatures/misc/ants/Prenolepis_imparis.htm.