Thursday, March 3, 2011

Red Velvet Ant aka COW KILLER by Kelly Teal

We got a phone call in the office today from a customer who has numerous holes in his pinestraw beds.  Our technician went out and moved the pinestraw and found holes into the soil.  The holes looked similar to this:



This my friends is a classic Red Velvet Ant nest. 

Red velvet ants are a good thing to spot in the landscape if you're worried about yellow jackets. Red velvet ants prey on yellow jackets and other ground-nesting bees and wasps by burrowing into their nest, laying an egg in the bee cocoon. The egg hatches into a grub that feeds on the surrounding bee larvae. Red velvet ants also prey on bumblebees. Adult red velvet ants feed on nectar.These critters aren't aggressive, but the female can deliver a painful sting when disturbed. Males don't sting.

If you see a red velvet ant in your yard or garden, it will try to avoid you; however, if you find a number of them, or are trying to protect children or pets, you may want to kill the ants. 



 

Female Red Velvet Ant has no wings
 

Male Red Velvet Ant has black wings  





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