Cocktail Ant vs Giant Ponerine Ant

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Cocktail Ant Giant Ponerine Ant
Scientific Name Crematogaster peringueyi Pachycondyla crassinoda
Order Hymenoptera Hymenoptera
Family Formicidae Formicidae
Size 3-5 mm 14-20 mm
Habitat Woodlands Forests
Diet Wood Feeders Predators
Regions Southern Africa West Africa, Central Africa
Conservation Least Concern Least Concern

Cocktail Ant

A small dark ant that holds its heart-shaped gaster raised above its body like a flag. It nests in dead wood and under bark.

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Did You Know?

When alarmed, they raise their abdomen over their back like a scorpion and exude a drop of repellent venom.

Giant Ponerine Ant

A very large black predatory ant of African tropical forests with powerful mandibles and a painful sting. Solitary foragers hunt large prey items on the forest floor.

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Did You Know?

Workers hunt alone and can subdue prey many times their own size using their potent sting.