Pogonomyrmex occidentalis (Western Harvester Ant) on a Spring Morning

_Pogonomyrmex occidentalis_ workers at the nest entrance on a cold morning

We’ve had a few warm-ish days after the last bout of snow storms. The weather is hitting 60 degrees F in the afternoons. I made a trip over to the desert just north of Farmington to see if any of the ants were out yet.

Most of the Harvester Ant nests I visited were still quiet. If the nest mound had a large rock embedded in it, there would often be ants under the rock. The rocks heat up more quickly than the gravel of the mound, so the ants like to sit under them and bask in the warmth.

_Pogonomyrmex occidentalis_ worker walking on the nest entrance on a Spring morning

The Pogonomyrmex occidentalis in these photos, though, were just starting to peek out of an entrance on the southern side of their nest entrance. They were making brief forays away from the nest entrance, usually staying within a foot or two of the hole.

That worked out very well for me, since it greatly decreased my chances of getting stung. These ants can be defensive to the point of being aggressive. They like to “retaliate first”.

It’s been a while since I have used my camera for taking macro photos, so had to experiment to get everything working. So I was paying far closer attention to my camera than I was to the ants. And since I’ve got to kneel down near the nest in order to get low-angle shots…slow, inactive Pogonomyrmex definitely work in my favor.