kmh4815
Black carpenter ants on an Eastern Redbud
Taken today, January 23rd, this Eastern Redbud tree located outside of Morton Hall is able to grow in the sandhill soil common in Coastal Plain region of North Carolina where Wilmington is found. If you look closely, ants that I assume to be black carpenter ants are traveling along its bark. This species of ants live in wood instead of consume it. As I was observing their pathway of movement, I noticed that they were venturing under the looser layers of bark, so at first glance I assumed this was their home. However, I later read that black carpenter ants typically live in rotted wood over a live tree. Upon further research, I came upon an article in americanforests.org that states how over time an aging tree's bark starts to open up due to factors like weathering creating an opportunity for water to enter and make for a habitable place for fungi. This process also welcomes ants and other insects to come in and start to investigate eating at that now softening bark to make paths that their colony could live in. Now, this is what I presume is occurring since I do see loose and cracked bark. The black carpenter ants meeting their need of shelter by utilizing the Eastern Redbud shows their ecological niche and an interaction with a biotic factor of their environment.
sources: www.americanforests.org/magazine/article/ants-and-trees-a...
Black carpenter ants on an Eastern Redbud
Taken today, January 23rd, this Eastern Redbud tree located outside of Morton Hall is able to grow in the sandhill soil common in Coastal Plain region of North Carolina where Wilmington is found. If you look closely, ants that I assume to be black carpenter ants are traveling along its bark. This species of ants live in wood instead of consume it. As I was observing their pathway of movement, I noticed that they were venturing under the looser layers of bark, so at first glance I assumed this was their home. However, I later read that black carpenter ants typically live in rotted wood over a live tree. Upon further research, I came upon an article in americanforests.org that states how over time an aging tree's bark starts to open up due to factors like weathering creating an opportunity for water to enter and make for a habitable place for fungi. This process also welcomes ants and other insects to come in and start to investigate eating at that now softening bark to make paths that their colony could live in. Now, this is what I presume is occurring since I do see loose and cracked bark. The black carpenter ants meeting their need of shelter by utilizing the Eastern Redbud shows their ecological niche and an interaction with a biotic factor of their environment.
sources: www.americanforests.org/magazine/article/ants-and-trees-a...