Linepithema humile
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~30%
The Argentine ant (Linepithema humile, formerly Iridomyrmex humilis) is an ant native to northern Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, Bolivia and southern Brazil. This invasive species was inadvertently introduced by humans on a global scale and has become established in many Mediterranean climate areas, including South Africa, New Zealand, Japan, Easter Island, Australia, the Azores, Europe, Hawaii, and the continental United States. Argentine ants are significant pests within agricultural and urban settings, and are documented to cause substantial harm to communities of native arthropods, vertebrates, and plants within their invaded range.
Linepithema humile is a small-bodied (2.2–2.6 mm) ant species, dull light to dark brown in color. Within the invasion zone, ant colonies are large and include many workers and multiple queens. Argentine ants are opportunistic with regard to nesting preferences. Colony nests have been found in the ground, in cracks in concrete walls, in spaces between boards and timbers, even among belongings in human dwellings. In natural areas, they generally nest shallowly in loose leaf litter or beneath small stones, due to their poor ability to dig... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Channel Islands National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Table Mountain National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tijuana | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 2 | Las Vegas | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Quito | 🇪🇨 Ecuador | |
| 4 | Santiago | 🇨🇱 Chile | |
| 5 | Los Angeles | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 6 | San Francisco | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 7 | La Paz | 🇧🇴 Bolivia | |
| 8 | Mexico City | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 9 | San Diego | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 10 | Barcelona | 🇪🇸 Spain |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report an Argentine Ant sighting in Cape Town on a given day, based on 40 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 95th most-seen of the 311 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 30%, if each day is a fresh chance.
February, April–May and September
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report an Argentine Ant in Cape Town on a given day, against under 5% in March, June–August and October–January, the lowest months.
Between 4 and 7 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Argentine Ant sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
14th of 23
Of the 23 cities where we can rate Argentine Ant sightings, Cape Town ranks 14th at about 10%. The best odds are in Tijuana (México, about 30%), Las Vegas (United States, about 20%) and Quito (Ecuador, about 20%).
Same family: Formicidae
The closest relatives of the Argentine Ant that you can see in Cape Town (family Formicidae, Ants) are Black Cocktail Ant (about 10%), Small Black Sugar Ant (about 10%) and Cape Harvester Ant (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Argentine Ant is recorded against all the insects logged in Cape Town (40 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
