Insects › Ants
Western Thatching Ant
Formica obscuripes
28 photos
Study shows up to four per card, from different observers, so you learn the species rather than one picture. Heart the good ones and swap any you do not like.
Photos you add are credited to you, and you keep the copyright.
Easily confused with
Western Mound AntFormica integroides
Southern Wood AntFormica rufa
Ulke's Mound AntFormica ulkei
Allegheny Mound AntFormica exsectoides
Black-backed meadow antFormica pratensis
Isabelline Mound AntFormica ravida
Formica aserva
Bicolored Carpenter AntCamponotus vicinus
Study checks a spoken answer against these, and tells you which one you named.
Where it is recorded
| United States | 3,858 |
|---|---|
| British Columbia | 1,736 |
| Washington | 1,727 |
| Canada | 1,377 |
| Alberta | 741 |
| Utah | 637 |
| Colorado | 446 |
| Idaho | 335 |
| Ontario | 235 |
| Oregon | 207 |
Counts show where people looked, not only where it lives.
Traits
Behavioral
- EusocialLives in colonies with division of labor and cooperative brood careFrom its classification
Ecological
- ColonialFrom its classification
Physical
- ExoskeletonHas a hard external skeletonFrom its classification
Classification
| Kingdom | Animals · Animalia |
|---|---|
| Phylum | Arthropods · Arthropoda |
| Class | Insects · Insecta |
| Order | Ants, Bees, Wasps, and Sawflies · Hymenoptera |
| Family | Ants · Formicidae |
| Genus | Wood, Mound, and Field Ants · Formica |
Sources
- Names, taxonomy and observation counts: www.inaturalist.org
- Photos and recordings: the creator and source are on each one.
- How much to rely on each source
Remember the name next time.
Practise Western Thatching Ant with real photos from different observers. Say the name out loud, and it comes back just before you would forget it.