St. Valentines Ant

Before the love month concludes, your #NationalMuseumPH would like to present the “St. Valentine ant”, a group of ants belonging to the genus Crematogaster, under the subfamily Myrmicinae. This ant group is distinguished by its characteristic heart-shaped abdomen. These abdomens are also amazingly raised acrobatically when they are agitated hence their other name, “cocktail ants”.

These ants are commonly arboreal and are often found nesting inside plants in a mutualistic relationship called Myrmecophytism. This association gives the resident ants shelter and the usual food secretions provided by the plants while the ants themselves offer protection from other predators which would otherwise consume the plant.

The Philippines currently has 20 native species of Crematogaster ants but it is believed that there could be more species present as new collections within unexplored parts of the country are undertaken. 

Text and photo by Zoology Division

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