Extrafloral Nectar

Acrobat Ant
Crematogaster sp.

ARIZONA, Pima County
2 miles south of Pima Fair Grounds
6 July 1999
Collected by Daniel Hahn at mercury vapor light while in pursuit of a doctoral degree.
3 colonies


In the Sonoran Desert, these ants find a nectar-like substance on various plants including some species of cholla cactus.
The plant has special organs called extrafloral nectaries which secrete a sweet sap that the ants relish. In some situations, the ants provide protection to the plant by stinging, spraying or swarming over insects that land on the plant.
This mutualism is advanced in some ant species, where the plant also provides hollow stems or spines for the ants to live in as well as protein nodules.
In these relationships, the plants provide all of the food and shelter needs of the ant colony.


The Artists
Original Photography
Charles A. Hedgcock
gelatin silver photographs		 Base Structure Fabrication
Philip Joachim
welded steel
Photo Illustration
Michael Mayer
digital high resolution output		 Ant Habitat Research, Development and Construction
Steve Prchal
ants, plastics, gypsum cement, metals

[Amazing!] [Foothills Resort] [Pebbles: Push-Pull-Drop]
[Extrafloral Nectar] [Nurturing Specialist] [Original Photographs]
[Participant Q & A's] [Before the Show]

[The Artists] [About Antics] [Antics' Community]