View source for Weaver ant

{{Short description|Genus of ants}}
{{Distinguish|fire ant}}
{{Redirect|Green ant|the Australian green-head ant|Green-head ant|the American pro wrestler|Tracy Williams|the 1990s Australian art publisher|Green Ant Research Arts and Publishing}}
{{use dmy dates|date=October 2024}}
{{Automatic taxobox
| fossil_range =  [[Ypresian]] – Recent<br/>{{fossilrange|52.1|0}}
| image = Red Weaver Ant, Oecophylla smaragdina.jpg
| image_caption = Weaver ant (''Oecophylla smaragdina'') major worker ([[India]]).
| image2 = Red Weaver Ant, Oecophylla longinoda.jpg
| image2_caption =  Weaver ant (''Oecophylla longinoda'') major worker ([[Tanzania]])
| display_parents = 2
| parent_authority = Emery, 1895
| taxon = Oecophylla
| authority = [[Frederick Smith (entomologist)|Smith]], 1860
| type_species = ''Formica virescens'' (junior synonym of ''Oecophylla smaragdina'')
| diversity_link = #Species
| diversity = 3 extant species<br />15 extinct species
| diversity_ref = <ref name="AntCat">{{AntCat|429237|''Oecophylla''|2015|access-date=30 January 2015}}</ref>
| range_map = Oecophylla range map.png
| range_map_alt = Map showing range of Oecophylla
| range_map_caption = ''Oecophylla'' range map.<br />''Oecophylla longinoda'' in blue, ''Oecophylla smaragdina'' in red.<ref name="Dlussky_2008">{{cite journal|last1=Dlussky|first1=G.M.|last2=Wappler|first2=T.|last3=Wedmann|first3=S.|title=New middle Eocene formicid species from Germany and the evolution of weaver ants|journal=Acta Palaeontologica Polonica|year=2008|volume=53|issue=4|pages=615–626|doi=10.4202/app.2008.0406|doi-access=free}}</ref>
}}
'''Weaver ants''' or '''green ants''' are [[eusocial]] [[insects]] of the [[Hymenoptera]] family [[Formicidae]] belonging to the tribe '''Oecophyllini'''. Weaver [[ants]] live in trees (they are obligately [[arboreal]]) and are known for their unique nest building behaviour where workers construct nests by weaving together leaves using larval [[silk]].<ref name=":0" /> Colonies can be extremely large consisting of more than a hundred nests spanning numerous trees and containing more than half a million workers. Like many other ant species, weaver ants prey on small insects and supplement their diet with carbohydrate-rich [[Honeydew (secretion)|honeydew]] excreted by [[scale insects]] ([[Hemiptera]]). Weaver ant workers exhibit a clear [[bimodal]] size distribution, with almost no overlap between the size of the minor and major workers.<ref>{{cite journal|author=Weber, NA|year=1946|title=Dimorphism in the African ''Oecophylla'' worker and an anomaly (Hym.: Formicidae)|journal=Annals of the Entomological Society of America|volume=39|pages=7–10| url=http://antbase.org/ants/publications/10434/10434.pdf|doi=10.1093/aesa/39.1.7}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author1=Wilson, Edward O. |author2=Robert W. Taylor  |name-list-style=amp |year=1964 |title=A fossil ant colony: new evidence of social antiquity |journal=Psyche: A Journal of Entomology |volume=71 |issue=2 |pages=93–103|url=http://psyche.entclub.org/pdf/71/71-093.pdf|doi=10.1155/1964/17612|doi-access=free }}</ref> The major workers are approximately {{convert|8|-|10|mm|abbr=on}} in length and the minors approximately half the length of the majors. Major workers forage, defend, maintain, and expand the colony whereas minor workers tend to stay within the nests where they care for the [[offspring|brood]] and 'milk' scale insects in or close to the nests.
[[File:Weaver ant queen 4.jpg|thumb|Dead weaver ant queen carried by a worker ant]]
Weaver ants vary in color from reddish to yellowish brown dependent on the species. ''[[Oecophylla smaragdina]]'' found in Australia often have bright green [[gaster (insect anatomy)|gasters]]. Weaver ants are highly territorial and workers aggressively defend their territories against intruders. Because they prey on insects harmful to their host trees, weaver ants are sometime used by indigenous farmers, particularly in southeast Asia, as [[Biological pest control|natural biocontrol agents]] against agricultural pests. Although weaver ants lack a functional sting they can inflict painful bites and often spray [[formic acid]]<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Bradshaw | first1 = J. W. S. | last2 = Baker | first2 = R. | last3 = Howse | first3 = P. E. | year = 1979 | title = Chemical composition of the poison apparatus secretions of the African weaver ant, ''Oecophylla longinoda'', and their role in behaviour | journal = Physiological Entomology | volume = 4 | issue = 1| pages = 39–46 | doi = 10.1111/j.1365-3032.1979.tb00175.x | s2cid = 84627128 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Peerzada | first1 = N. | last2 = Pakkiyaretnam | first2 = T. | last3 = Renaud | first3 = S. | last4 = Volatile | year = 1990 | title = ''Oecophylla smaragdina''. Agric | url = http://www.cabdirect.org/abstracts/19920512826.html | journal = Biol. Chem. | volume = 54 | issue = 12| pages = 3335–3336 | doi = 10.1271/bbb1961.54.3335 | doi-access = free }}</ref> directly at the bite wound resulting in intense discomfort.
== Taxonomy ==
[[File:SSL12022p.jpg|thumb|300px|left|Liquid food exchange ([[trophallaxis]]) in ''[[Oecophylla smaragdina|O. smaragdina]]'']]
The weaver ants belong to the genus ''Oecophylla'' (subfamily Formicinae) which contains two closely related living species: ''O. longinoda'' and ''O. smaragdina''.<ref name="AntCat" /> They are placed in a [[tribe (biology)|tribe]] of their own, '''Oecophyllini''' with the extinct genus ''[[Eoecophylla]]''. The weaver ant genus ''Oecophylla'' is relatively old, and 15 fossil species have been described from Eocene to Miocene deposits.<ref name="Dlussky_2008" /><ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Azuma | first1 = N. | last2 = Kikuchi | first2 = T. | last3 = Ogata | first3 = K. | last4 = Higashi | first4 = S. | year = 2002 | title = Molecular phylogeny among local populations of weaver ant ''Oecophylla smaragdina'' | journal = Zoological Science | volume = 19 | issue = 11 | pages = 1321–1328 | doi = 10.2108/zsj.19.1321 | pmid = 12499676 | hdl = 2115/54519 | s2cid = 41958256 | hdl-access = free }}</ref> The oldest members of both Oecophyllini and ''Oecophylla'' are fossils described from the mid-[[Ypresian]] [[Eocene Okanagan Highlands]] of Northwestern North America.<ref name=Eoecophylla>{{Cite journal|last1=Archibald |first1=S. B. |last2=Mathewes |first2=R. W. |last3=Perfilieva |first3=K. S. |title=Fossil weaver ants (Hymenoptera, Formicidae, Oecophyllini) of the early Eocene Okanagan Highlands of far-western North America |year=2024 |journal=The Canadian Entomologist |volume=156 |at=e2 |doi=10.4039/tce.2023.27 |doi-access=free }}</ref> Two other genera of weaving ants, ''[[Polyrhachis]]'' and ''[[Camponotus]]'',<ref>{{cite journal |author=Rebecca N. Johnson, Paul-Michael Agapow & Ross H. Crozier |year=2003 |title=A tree island approach to inferring phylogeny in the ant subfamily Formicinae, with especial reference to the evolution of weaving |journal=[[Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution]] |volume=29 |issue=2 |pages=317–330 |doi=10.1016/S1055-7903(03)00114-3 |pmid=13678687 |url=http://www.agapow.net/publications/mpe2003.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120406152654/http://www.agapow.net/publications/mpe2003.pdf |archive-date=2012-04-06 }}</ref><ref name = "COL">{{cite journal|doi=10.1590/1809-4392201801951|title=New records of three Neotropical arboreal ant species of Camponotus, subgenus Dendromyrmex (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) for the southern Amazon, including biological information|year=2019|doi-access=free|last1=Vicente|first1=Ricardo Eduardo|last2=Ferreira-Silva|first2=Diego|last3=Guerreiro De Lima|first3=Mendelson|journal=Acta Amazonica|volume=49|pages=36–40}}</ref> also use larval silk in nest construction, but the construction and architecture of their nests are simpler than those of ''Oecophylla''.<ref name="Hölldober, B. 1990">Hölldober, B. & Wilson, E.O. 1990. ''The ants''. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press.</ref>
[[File:Two weaver ants.JPG|thumb|250px|Two ''[[Oecophylla smaragdina|O. smaragdina]]'' transferring food to their colony]]
The common features of the genus include an elongated first funicular segment, presence of propodeal lobes, helcium at midheight of abdominal segment 3 and gaster capable of reflexion over the mesosoma. Males have [[vestigial]] pretarsal claws.<ref>Bolton, B. 2003. Synopsis and Classification of Formicidae. 370 pp. Memoirs of the American Entomological Institute, Vol. 71. Gainesville, FL.</ref>
=== Genera and species ===
* ''[[Oecophylla]]''
Extant species:
{{Div col}}
* ''[[Oecophylla kolhapurensis]]'' {{small|Kurane ''et al.'', 2015}}
* ''[[Oecophylla longinoda]]'' {{small|([[Pierre André Latreille|Latreille]], 1802)}}
* ''[[Oecophylla smaragdina]]'' {{small|([[Johan Christian Fabricius|Fabricius]], 1775)}}
{{div col end}}
Extinct species:
{{Div col}}
* †''[[Oecophylla atavina]]'' {{small|Cockerell, 1915}}
* †''[[Oecophylla bartoniana]]'' {{small|Cockerell, 1920}}
* †''[[Oecophylla brischkei]]'' {{small|Mayr, 1868}}
* †''[[Oecophylla crassinoda]]'' {{small|Wheeler, 1922}}
* †''[[Oecophylla eckfeldiana]]'' {{small|Dlussky, Wappler & Wedmann, 2008}}
* †''[[Oecophylla grandimandibula]]'' {{small|Riou, 1999}}
* †''[[Oecophylla kraussei]]'' {{small|(Dlussky & Rasnitsyn, 1999)}}
* †''[[Oecophylla leakeyi]]'' {{small|Wilson & Taylor, 1964}}
* †''[[Oecophylla longiceps]]'' {{small|Dlussky, Wappler & Wedmann, 2008}}
* †''[[Oecophylla megarche]]'' {{small|Cockerell, 1915}}
* †''[[Oecophylla obesa]]'' {{small|(Heer, 1849)}}
* †''[[Oecophylla praeclara]]'' {{small|Förster, 1891}}
* †''[[Oecophylla sicula]]'' {{small|Emery, 1891}}
* †''[[Oecophylla superba]]'' {{small|Théobald, 1937}}
{{div col end}}
*†''[[Eoecophylla]]'' {{small|Archibald, Mathewes, & Perfilieva, 2024}}
== Description ==
''Oecophylla'' have 12-segmented antennae, a feature shared with some other ant genera. The mandibles each have 10 or more teeth, and the fourth tooth from the tip is longer than the third and fifth teeth. The palps are short, with the maxillary palps being 5-segmented and the labial palps being 4-segmented. The mesonotum is constricted and (in dorsal view) narrower than the pronotum and propodeum. The node of the petiole is low and rounded.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Key to Australian Genera of Formicinae - AntWiki |url=https://antwiki.org/wiki/Key_to_Australian_Genera_of_Formicinae |access-date=2023-04-05 |website=antwiki.org}}</ref>
== Distribution and habitat ==
''O. longinoda'' is distributed in the [[Afrotropics]] and ''O. smaragdina'' from [[India]] and [[Sri Lanka]] in southern Asia, through southeastern Asia to northern Australia and [[Melanesia]].<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Crozier|first1=R.H.|last2=Newey|first2=P.S. |last3=E.A.|first3=Schlüns|last4=Robson|first4=S.K.A.|title=A masterpiece of evolution – ''Oecophylla'' weaver ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)|journal=Myrmecological News|volume=13|year=2010|pages=57–71}}</ref> In Australia, ''Oecophylla smaragdina'' is found in the tropical coastal areas as far south as [[Broome, Western Australia|Broome]] in Western Australia and across the coastal tropics of the Northern Territory down to [[Yeppoon]] in [[Queensland]].<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Lokkers|first1=C|title=The Distribution of the Weaver Ant, ''Oecophylla smaragdina'' (Fabricius) (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) in Northern Australia|journal=Australian Journal of Zoology|volume=34|issue=5|year=1986|pages=683–687|issn=0004-959X|doi=10.1071/ZO9860683}}</ref>
== Colony ontogeny and social organization ==
[[File:AntsStitchingLeave.jpg|thumb|Weaver ants collaborating to pull nest leaves together]]
Weaver ant colonies are founded by one or more mated females ([[Queen ant|queens]]).<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Peng | first1 = RK | last2 = Christian | first2 = K | last3 = Gibb | first3 = K | year = 1998 | title = How many queens are there in mature colonies of the green ant, ''Oecophylla smaragdina'' (Fabricius)? | journal = Australian Journal of Entomology | volume = 37 | issue = 3| pages = 249–253 | doi = 10.1111/j.1440-6055.1998.tb01579.x }}</ref> A queen lays her first clutch of [[egg (biology)|eggs]] on a leaf and protects and feeds the larvae until they develop into mature workers. The workers then construct leaf nests and help rear new brood laid by the queen. As the number of workers increases, more nests are constructed and colony productivity and growth increase significantly. Workers perform tasks that are essential to colony survival, including foraging, nest construction, and colony defense. The exchange of information and modulation of worker behaviour that occur during worker-worker interactions are facilitated by the use of chemical and tactile communication signals. These signals are used primarily in the contexts of foraging and colony defense. Successful foragers lay down pheromone trails that help recruit other workers to new food sources. Pheromone trails are also used by patrollers to recruit workers against territorial intruders. Along with chemical signals, workers also use tactile communication signals such as attenation and body shaking to stimulate activity in signal recipients. Multimodal communication in ''Oecophylla'' weaver ants importantly contributes to colony [[self-organization]].<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Hölldobler | first1 = B | year = 1999 | title = Multimodal signals in ant communication | journal = J Comp Physiol A | volume = 184 | issue = 2 | pages = 129–141 | doi = 10.1007/s003590050313 | s2cid = 20377019 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Hölldobler | first1 = B | year = 1983 | title = Territorial behavior in the green tree ant (''Oecophylla smaragdina'') | journal = Biotropica | volume = 15 | issue = 4 | pages = 241–250 | doi = 10.2307/2387648 | jstor = 2387648 }}</ref> Like many other ant species, ''Oecophylla'' workers exhibit social carrying behavior as part of the recruitment process, in which one worker will carry another worker in its mandibles and transport it to a location requiring attention.{{citation needed|date=August 2014}}
== Nest building behaviour ==
[[File:Weaverantnest05268.jpg|thumb|left|Weaver ant nest on a [[mango]] tree]]
''Oecophylla'' weaver ants are known for their cooperative behaviour used in nest construction. Possibly the first description of weaver ants' nest building behaviour was made by the English naturalist [[Joseph Banks]], who took part in [[Captain James Cook]]'s voyage to [[Australia]] in 1768. An excerpt from Joseph Banks' ''Journal'' (cited in Hölldobler and Wilson 1990) is included below:
<blockquote>
The ants...one green as a leaf, and living upon trees, where it built a nest, in size between that of a man's head and his fist, by bending the leaves together, and gluing them with whitish paperish substances which held them firmly together. In doing this their management was most curious: they bend down four leaves broader than a man's hand, and place them in such a direction as they choose. This requires a much larger force than these animals seem capable of; many thousands indeed are employed in the joint work. I have seen as many as could stand by one another, holding down such a leaf, each drawing down with all his might, while others within were employed to fasten the glue. How they had bent it down I had not the opportunity of seeing, but it was held down by main strength, I easily proved by disturbing a part of them, on which the leaf bursting from the rest, returned to its natural situation, and I had an opportunity of trying with my finger the strength of these little animals must have used to get it down.<ref name="Hölldober, B. 1990" />
</blockquote>
The weaver ants' ability to build capacious nests from living leaves has undeniably contributed to their ecological success. The first phase in nest construction involves workers surveying potential nesting leaves by pulling on the edges with their mandibles. When a few ants have successfully bent a leaf onto itself or drawn its edge toward another, other workers nearby join the effort. The [[probability]] of a worker joining the concerted effort is dependent on the size of the group, with workers showing a higher probability of joining when group size is large.<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Deneubourg | first1 = J.L. | last2 = Lioni | first2 = A. | last3 = Detrain | first3 = C. | year = 2002 | title = Dynamics of aggregation and emergence of cooperation | journal = Biological Bulletin | volume = 202 | issue = 3 | pages = 262–267 | doi = 10.2307/1543477 | jstor = 1543477 | pmid = 12086998 | s2cid = 3097108 | url = https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/part/21167 }}</ref> When the span between two leaves is beyond the reach of a single ant, workers form chains with their bodies by grasping one another's [[Petiole (insect)|petiole]] (waist).
Multiple intricate chains working in unison are often used to ratchet together large leaves during nest construction. Once the edges of the leaves are drawn together, other workers retrieve [[larva]]e from existing nests using their mandibles. Upon reaching a seam to be joined, these workers tap the head of the clutched [[larva]]e, which causes them to excrete [[silk]]. They can only produce so much silk, so the larva will have to pupate without a cocoon. The workers then maneuver between the leaves in a highly coordinated fashion to bind them together.<ref name="Hölldober, B. 1990" /> Weaver ants' nests are usually elliptical in shape and range in size from a single small leaf folded and bound onto itself to large nests consisting of many leaves and measure over half a meter in length. The time required to construct a nest varies depending on leaf type and eventual size, but often a large nest can be built in significantly less than 24 hours. Although weaver ants' nests are strong and impermeable to water, new nests are continually being built by workers in large colonies to replace old dying nests and those damaged by storms.<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Offenberg | first1 = J | year = 2014 | title = The use of artificial nests by weaver ants: A preliminary field observation | url = http://www.asian-myrmecology.org/publications/am06-119-128-offenberg-2014.pdf | journal = Asian Myrmecology | volume = 6 | pages = 119–128 }}</ref>
== Relationship with humans ==
=== In agriculture ===
[[File:Oecophylla smaragdina tending.jpg|thumb|left|''[[Oecophylla smaragdina|O. smaragdina]]'' tending scale insects]]
Large colonies of ''Oecophylla'' weaver ants consume significant amounts of food, and workers continuously kill a variety of [[arthropods]] (primarily other [[insects]]) close to their nests. Insects are not only consumed by workers, but this [[protein]] source is necessary for brood development. Because weaver ant workers hunt and kill insects that are potentially harmful plant pests, trees harboring weaver ants benefit from having decreased levels of [[herbivory]].<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Offenberg|first1=J.|last2=Havanon|first2=S.|last3=Aksornkoae|first3=S.|last4=Macintosh|first4=D.J.|last5=Nielsen|first5=M.G.|title=Observations on the Ecology of Weaver Ants (''Oecophylla smaragdina'' Fabricius) in a Thai Mangrove Ecosystem and Their Effect on Herbivory of Rhizophora mucronata Lam.|journal=Biotropica|date=2004|volume=36|issue=3|pages=344–351|doi=10.1111/j.1744-7429.2004.tb00326.x|s2cid=55160841 }}</ref> They have traditionally been used in biological control in Chinese and Southeast Asian citrus orchards from at least 400 AD.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Chen|first1=S.|title=The oldest practice of biological control: The cultural and efficacy of ''Oecophylla smaragdina'' Fabr in orange orchards|journal=Acta Entomologica Sinica|date=1991|volume=11|pages=401–407}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last1=Barzman|first1=M.S.|last2=Mills|first2=N.J.|last3=Thu Cuc|first3=N.G.|title=Traditional knowledge and rationale for weaver ant husbandry in the Mekong delta of Vietnam|journal=Agriculture and Human Values|date=1996|volume=13|issue=4|pages=2–9|doi=10.1007/BF01530519|s2cid=153792425}}</ref> Many studies have shown the efficacy of using weaver ants as natural biocontrol agents against agricultural pests.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Van Mele|first1=P.|title=A historical review of research on the weaver ant ''Oecophylla'' in biological control|journal=Agricultural and Forest Entomology|date=2008|volume=10|issue=1|pages=13–22|doi=10.1111/j.1461-9563.2007.00350.x|doi-access=free}}</ref> The use of weaver ants as biocontrol agents has especially been effective for fruit agriculture, particularly in [[Australia]] and [[southeast Asia]].<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Van Mele|first1=P.|last2=Cuc|first2=N. T. T.|last3=VanHuis|first3=A.|title=Direct and indirect influences of the weaver ant ''Oecophylla smaragdina'' on citrus farmers' pest perceptions and management practices in the Mekong Delta, Vietnam|journal=International Journal of Pest Management|date=2002|volume=48|issue=3|pages=225–232|doi=10.1080/09670870110118713|s2cid=56250492}}</ref><ref name="Peng, R. 2007">{{cite journal|last1=Peng|first1=R.|last2=Christian|first2=K.|title=The effect of the weaver ant, (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), on the mango seed weevil, (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), in mango orchards in the Northern Territory of Australia|journal=International Journal of Pest Management|date=2007|volume=53|issue=1|pages=15–24|doi=10.1080/09670870600968859|s2cid=83559389}}</ref> Fruit trees harboring weaver ants produce higher quality [[fruits]], show less leaf damage by [[herbivores]], and require fewer applications of synthetic [[pesticides]].<ref name="Peng, R. 2007" /><ref>{{cite journal|last1=Peng|first1=R. K.|last2=Christian|first2=K.|title=The dimpling bug, ''Campylomma austrina'' Malipatil (Hemiptera: Miridae): the damage and its relationship with ants in mango orchards in the Northern Territory of Australia|journal=International Journal of Pest Management|date=2008|volume=54|issue=2|pages=173–179|doi=10.1080/09670870701875243|s2cid=85159932}}</ref> They do on the other hand protect the [[scale insect]]s which they 'milk' for [[Honeydew (secretion)|honeydew]]. In several cases the use of weaver ants has nonetheless been shown to be more efficient than applying chemical insecticides and at the same time cheaper, leaving farmers with increased net incomes and more sustainable pest control.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Offenberg|first1=J.|last2=Firn|first2=J.|title=Ants as tools in sustainable agriculture|journal=Journal of Applied Ecology|year=2015|volume=52|issue=5|pages=1197–1205|doi=10.1111/1365-2664.12496|doi-access=free}}</ref>
Weaver ant husbandry is often practiced in Southeast Asia, where farmers provide shelter, food and construct ropes between trees populated with weaver ants in order to protect their colonies from potential competitors.<ref name="Van Mele_Vayssières_2007">{{cite journal|last1=Van Mele|first1=P.|last2=Vayssières|first2=J.F.|title=Weaver ants help farmers to capture organic markets|journal=Pesticides News|year=2007|volume=75|issue=6|pages=9–11}}</ref>
''Oecophylla'' colonies may not be entirely beneficial to the host plants. Studies indicate that the presence of ''Oecophylla'' colonies may also have negative effects on the performance of host plants by reducing fruit removal by mammals and birds and therefore reducing seed dispersal and by lowering the flower-visiting rate of flying insects including pollinators.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Thomas |first1=Donald W.|year=1988|title=The influence of aggressive ants on fruit removal in the tropical tree, ''Ficus capensis'' (Moraceae) |journal=Biotropica|volume=20|issue=1|pages=49–53|jstor=2388425|doi=10.2307/2388425}}</ref><ref name="Kazuki TSUJI 2004">{{cite journal|author1=Tsuji, Kazuki |author2=Ahsol Hasyim, Harlion |author3=Koji Nakamura |year=2004|title=Asian weaver ants, ''Oecophylla smaragdina'', and their repelling of pollinators|journal=Ecological Research|volume=19|issue=6|pages=669–673|doi=10.1111/j.1440-1703.2004.00682.x|s2cid=1039367}}</ref> Weaver ants also have an adverse effect on tree productivity by protecting sap feeding insects such as [[scale insect]]s and [[leafhopper]]s from which they collect [[Honeydew (secretion)|honeydew]].<ref name="Kazuki TSUJI 2004" /><ref>{{cite journal|last=Weber|first=Neal A.|year=1949|title=The functional significance of dimorphism in the African ant, ''Oecophylla'' |journal=Ecology|volume=30|issue=3|pages=397–400|url=https://archive.org/details/ants_10438|doi=10.2307/1932624|jstor=1932624}}</ref> By protecting these insects from predators they increase their population and increase the damage they cause to trees.<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Blüthgen | first1 = N. Fiedler | year = 2002 | title = Interactions between weaver ants ''Oecophylla smaragdina'', homopterans, trees and lianas in an Australian rain forest canopy | journal = Journal of Animal Ecology | volume = 71 | issue = 5 | page = 5 | doi = 10.1046/j.1365-2656.2002.00647.x | doi-access =  }}</ref>
=== As food, feed and medicine ===
[[File:Ants Eggs Market Thailand.jpg|thumb|200px|right|Leaf packets of larvae in [[Isaan]] typically sell for about 20 Thai Baht each (about 0.65 USD)]]
Weaver ants are one of the most valued types of [[edible insects]] consumed by humans ([[human entomophagy]]). In addition to being used as a biological control agent to increase plant production, weaver ants can be utilized directly as a protein and food source since the ants (especially the ant larvae) are edible for humans and high in protein and fatty acids.<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Raksakantong | first1 = P | last2 = Meeso | first2 = N | last3 = Kubola | first3 = J | last4 = Siriamornpun | first4 = S | year = 2010 | title = Fatty acids and proximate composition of eight Thai edible terricolous insects | journal = Food Research International | volume = 43 | issue = 1| pages = 350–355 | doi = 10.1016/j.foodres.2009.10.014 }}</ref> In some countries the weaver ant is a highly prized delicacy harvested in vast amounts and in this way contribute to local socio-economics.<ref>{{cite book |title=Edible insects: future prospects for food and feed security |author=van Huis, Arnold |year=2013 |publisher=FAO |isbn=978-92-5-107596-8 |series=FAO Forestry Paper 171 |url=http://www.fao.org/docrep/018/i3253e/i3253e.pdf |display-authors=etal}}</ref> In Northeastern Thailand the price of weaver ant larvae is twice the price of good-quality beef and in a single Thai province ant larvae worth US$620,000 are harvested every year.<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Sribandit | first1 = W | last2 = Wiwatwitaya | first2 = D | last3 = Suksard | first3 = S | last4 = Offenberg | first4 = J | year = 2008 | title = The importance of weaver ant (''Oecophylla smaragdina'' Fabricius) harvest to a local community in Northeastern Thailand | url = http://www.asian-myrmecology.org/publications/sribandit-et-al-am-2008.pdf | journal = Asian Myrmecology | volume = 2 | pages = 129–138 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Offenberg | first1 = J | year = 2011 | title = ''Oecophylla smaragdina'' food conversion efficiency: prospects for ant farming | journal = Journal of Applied Entomology | volume = 135 | issue = 8| pages = 575–581 | doi = 10.1111/j.1439-0418.2010.01588.x | s2cid = 83644244 }}</ref> It has furthermore been shown that the harvest of weaver ants can be maintained while at the same time using the ants for biocontrol of pest insects in tropical plantations, since the queen larvae and pupae that are the primary target of harvest, are not vital for colony survival.<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Offenberg | first1 = J | last2 = Wiwatwitaya | first2 = D | year = 2010 | title = Sustainable weaver ant (''Oecophylla smaragdina'') farming: harvest yields and effects on worker ant density | url = http://www.asian-myrmecology.org/publications/offenberg-wiwatwitaya-am-2010.pdf | journal = Asian Myrmecology | volume = 3 | pages = 55–62 }}</ref>
The larvae of weaver ants are also collected commercially [[Insects as feed|as an expensive feed]] for insect-eating birds in Indonesia.
In India and China, the worker ants are used in traditional medicine.<ref name=":0">{{cite journal | last1 = Rastogi | first1 = N | year = 2011 | title = Provisioning services from ants: food and pharmaceuticals | url = http://www.asian-myrmecology.org/publications/am04_103-120_ragosti_2011.pdf | journal = Asian Myrmecology | volume = 4 | pages = 103–120 }}</ref><ref>Césard N, 2004. Harvesting and commercialisation of kroto (''Oecophylla smaragdina'') in the Malingpeng area, West Java, Indonesia. In: Forest products, livelihoods and conservation. Case studies of non-timber product systems (Kusters K, Belcher B, eds), Center for International Forestry Research, Bogor, 61-77</ref>
== See also ==
* ''[[Polyrhachis]]'', other ants that weave nests (though less complex)
* ''[[Where the Green Ants Dream]]'', a 1984 film directed by [[Werner Herzog]]
* ''[[Myrmarachne plataleoides]]'', a spider that mimics the weaver ant
* ''[[Nanfang Caomu Zhuang]]'', earliest Chinese record of ''O. smaragdina'' "citrus ants" protecting orange crops
== References ==
{{Reflist}}
== External links ==
{{Commons|Oecophylla}}
{{Wikispecies|Oecophylla}}
* {{YouTube|DExQK5DVGkc|Weaver ants constructing a leaf nest}}
* {{YouTube|eMRyL7ViMss|Weaver ant harvest in Thailand}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20110420035751/http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/05/weaver-ants/chadwick-text Weaver Ants – National Geographic, May 2011]
* [http://www.antweb.org/description.do?name=oecophylla&project=worldants&rank=genus AntWeb – Ants of the world]
* [http://tolweb.org/Oecophylla/22308 Tree Of Life – Oecophylla]
* [http://www.soe-townsville.org/greentreeants/index.html Green tree ants]
* [http://www.antbase.net/pdf/ants_as_friends_english.pdf Ants as friends. Insect Pest Management on Tree Crops with Weaver Ants by Paul Van Mele and Nguyen Thi Thu Cuc]
{{Taxonbar|from1=Q177349|from2=Q6049106}}
[[Category:Formicinae]]
[[Category:Taxa named by Frederick Smith (entomologist)]]