Formica lugubris
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~30%
Formica lugubris, also known as the hairy wood ant, is commonly found in wooded upland areas across northern Eurasia. Colonies construct large thatched mound nests occupied by thousands of workers, and one or more queens. Workers look similar to other species of wood ants (genus Formica), but Formica lugubris workers can be identified by a fringe of hairs that reaches down to their eyes and prominent hairs between the facets of their compound eyes. Workers can reach sizes of up to 9 mm long; queens are larger, reaching 12 mm long.
Each ant is able to recognize other members of their colony by a specific odor they all carry on them. Different odors allow them to also recognize other insects and ants from other colonies. When these ants encounter members of other ant species, these are usually considered intruders and are seized and dragged into the nest. Combat between ants is common and almost always ends with death of one ant. When red wood ants encounter members of different colonies similar responses may be made, although in populations where nests have multiple queens, there is often very little aggression between members of neighbouring nests. When aggression occurs... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pyrénées National Park | 🇫🇷 France |
More parks will be added in future updates.
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Hairy Wood Ant sighting in Pyrénées National Park on a given day, based on 15 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 610th most-seen of the 1277 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 30%, if each day is a fresh chance.
March–July and September
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Hairy Wood Ant in Pyrénées National Park on a given day, against under 5% in August and October–February, the lowest months.
Between noon and 3 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Hairy Wood Ant sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Only Pyrénées National Park, in our data
Pyrénées National Park is the only park on Wallace's Line with enough records to rate Hairy Wood Ant sightings: under 5% of wildlife watchers there report one on a given day.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Hairy Wood Ant is recorded against all the insects logged in Pyrénées National Park (15 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), 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.
