第 1013 號，共 1 402 號

Red harvester ant

Pogonomyrmex barbatus

只是會痛會痛，但不會對你造成嚴重傷害。

螫吃：每樣都來一點

The red harvester ant is a large ant that lives in the dry, scrubby land of the southwestern United States. Its nests are dug underground, and the bare patches around them are easy to spot in open grassland. It matters because these ants gather seeds and help spread plants across the land.1

分布在

Native to the Southwestern United States1

北美洲

首頁

Prefers dry chaparral and open, arid areas. Nests are underground, up to 2.5 m deep, in exposed ground. In grassland such as ranches, the bare mounds make colonies very easy to see.1

長度

5 mm 到 7 mm (0,2 in 到 0,3 in)1

最高速度

大約 0,16 km/h（0,1 mph）

在陸地上, 粗略估計

牠吃什麼？

Seeds are the main food. Workers grind them into a bread-like paste with their large mandibles and store it in a granary, so the colony has food all year. Dead insects are also collected while foraging.1

Red harvester ant 的照片 — Red harvester ant。照片：unknown。 CC0, iNaturalist.

怎麼認出牠

Large ant, about 5 to 7 mm long1
Mound is flat and broad, up to 100 mm high and 300 to 1,200 mm across1
Bare ground with no plants, and small pebbles around the tunnel entrance1
Three to eight trails lead out from the mound, like arms1
Seed hulls are often scattered around the nest1

常被誤認為： Red harvester ants are often mistaken for fire ants. They are not closely related to any fire ant species, native or introduced.1

毒液力量

螫

毒液從螫針出來。

牠對人有多危險？

對人的危險: 疼痛可能會非常痛，但幾乎從來不會很嚴重。

如果牠螫人

清洗並冷敷螫傷處。
如果傷者呼吸困難、臉部或喉嚨腫脹，或覺得快要昏倒，這就是過敏急症：打緊急電話。

一定要先打緊急電話（112、000、911）。這是一般急救指引，不是醫療建議。急救基本知識

注意安全

絕對不要碰、抓或捉弄野生動物，就算是很小的動物，就算牠看起來在睡覺或已經死了也一樣。
給牠空間。如果遇到了，保持冷靜，慢慢往後退，讓牠自己離開。
如果被牠螫了：保持冷靜，保持不動，打緊急電話（112、000、911）或趕快去醫院。記住牠的樣子，有照片會很有幫助。

牠不是想來抓你。牠用毒液來捕捉食物或保護自己，而且牠更想躲起來。更多安全知識

在世界上的哪裡？

非洲亞洲歐洲北美洲南美洲澳洲與大洋洲

牠有多大？

牠有多長？

小到可以坐在你的指甲上

Red harvester ant 跟「你」比起來有多大？

只是在你的瀏覽器裡做算術。什麼都不會儲存，也不會傳送到任何地方。

牠有多快？

一隻花園蝸牛 大約 0,05 km/h (0,03 mph)

Red harvester ant 大約 0,16 km/h (0,1 mph)

一隻陸龜 大約 0,3 km/h (0,19 mph)

值得知道

小知識

Some queens have been known to live up to 30 years in the wild.1

Colonies have no central control. They adjust how much they forage using feedback from returning ants, which can take only seconds.1

Rival Novomessor cockerelli ants block nest entrances with sand and small rocks, delaying the red harvester ants' activity by one to three hours.1

Seeds are stored in the nest for months, and sometimes several years, so the colony has food during lean times.1

The plants benefit too. Ants carry seeds while foraging, which spreads the plants over a wider area.1

Ant foraging is guided by chemical signals, and foragers can travel up to 50 to 60 m from the nest.1

破解迷思

迷思： Red harvester ants are fire ants.

真相： They are often mistaken for fire ants but are not closely related to any fire ant species.1

給毒液專家

學名: Pogonomyrmex barbatus
類群: 螞蟻
家人: Formicidae2
排序: Hymenoptera
各大洲: 北美洲
寶寶: A single queen starts each new colony by sealing herself in a soil nest and laying eggs. The first workers emerge over six to eight weeks.1
壽命: 大約 30 年1
對人的危險: 2 / 5: 疼痛3