Common citronella ant
Lasius claviger
The common citronella ant is a small yellow ant from the United States. It spends most of its life hidden underground. If it is squashed, it smells a bit like lemons, which is how it got its name.
Lives in
The United States, in the soil of lawns, fields and woods
What does it eat?
It mostly drinks the sweet honeydew made by tiny bugs that live on plant roots underground.
How fast is it?
A garden snail about 0.05 km/h (0.03 mph)
A tortoise about 0.3 km/h (0.19 mph)
Common citronella ant about 0.3 km/h (0.19 mph)
A person walking about 5 km/h (3.1 mph)
cool stuff
Fun facts
1
Its lemony smell comes from a chemical it makes to defend itself.
2
It is also called the smaller yellow ant.
3
It was first described in 1862 by a scientist named Roger.
you asked
Most asked questions about Common citronella ant
?Why does the citronella ant smell like lemon?
It makes a lemony smelling chemical to protect itself, and you notice it when the ant is crushed.
For bug experts
- Scientific name
- Lasius claviger
- Named by
- Roger, 1862
- Group
- Ants
- Family
- Formicidae
- Classification
- Insecta > Hymenoptera > Formicidae
- Lives on
- North America
- Also known as
- Smaller yellow ant
Where the facts come from
- Lasius claviger (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0): what it looks like, where it lives, what it eats, sizes and fun facts, retold in simple words.
- Picture by April Nobile. CC BY 4.0, Wikimedia Commons. The sticker of this bug is drawn from this picture.
If we got something wrong, sorry, we are bug fans, not a science journal. Tell us at [email protected] and we will fix it.
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