One of only dozen species of native ants, widely distributed throughout Aotearoa / New Zealand, and its offshore islands
Striated ant
English name: striated ant
Scientific name: Huberia striata (Smith)
Order: Hymenoptera
Family: Formicidae
- is widely distributed throughout Aotearoa / New Zealand, and its offshore islands;
- nests in the soil, often under stones and in rotting logs;
- is not encountered as often as the introduced ants, which tend to invade houses and gardens;
- has a general diet
- may keep scale insects in its nests, to feed on the honeydew they excrete.
There are less than a dozen species of native ants, probably owing to the early isolation of Aotearoa / New Zealand from other land masses. Most of these have close relatives in other parts of the world, but the genus Huberia, with two species, is unique to this country.