Description

Camponotus gigas Latreille 1802 (subgenus Dinomyrmex),is one of the largest ant species of the world living in the South- East Asian rain forests, from Sumatra to Thailand. Its habitat ranges from peat swamps of the mangrove forests up to the mountain forests at 1500 m above sea level. In South Borneo it is replaced by Camponotus gigas ssp borneensis, a subspecies with yellow legs.

Camponotus gigas is a central place forager which has a polydomous colony structure, and combines efficient communication, ergonomic optimization, polyethism and effective recruitment systems to optimise its foraging yield. A subcaste of specialist transport workers carries food from peripheral nests to the central nest of the queen ( Pfeiffer and Linsenmair, 1998).