Seasonal abundance and activity pattern of commonly occurring household ant species(Hymenoptera: Formicidae)

The study was conducted on the campus of Bangalore University, Bengaluru, India for a period of two years. The chief aim of this study was to record the seasonal abundance and surface activity of five household ant species viz. Solenopsis geminata, Monomorium latinode, Tapinoma melanocephalum, Paratrechina longicornis and Camponotus variegatus. The study revealed that S. geminata was abundant in winter and summer, T. melanocephalum and C. variegatus were abundant in summer, whereas M. latinode and P. longicornis in monsoon. The surface activity of S. geminata was positively correlated with air temperature and negatively with ambient humidity. The activity of M. latinode was found to correlate positively with rainfall and soil moisture. The activity of T. melanocephalum was positively correlated with air temperature and negatively with rainfall. On the contrary, the activity of P. longicornis was positively correlated with rainfall and negatively with soil and air temperature. The activity of C. variegatus was found to correlate positively with soil and air temperature and negatively with rainfall. The information on the seasonal activity pattern of household ant species could be useful in their management