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Carpenter Ants, Typical Sugar Ants and Allies
Camponotus
Camponotus, the carpenter ants, are a genus of ants in the subfamily Formicinae found nearly worldwide except in Antarctica and a few islands. This genus is the most species-rich genus of ants in terms of described species, comprising over 1,500 described species as of 2025. Although they are commonly referred to as carpenter ants, only a few members, mostly in the subgenera Camponotus and Myrmentoma, nest in wood.
True carpenter ants build nests inside wood, consisting of galleries chewed out with their mandibles or jaws, preferably in dead, damp wood. However, unlike termites, they do not consume wood, but instead discard a material that resembles sawdust outside their nest. Sometimes, carpenter ants hollow out sections of trees. They also commonly infest wooden buildings and structures, causing a widespread problem: they are a major cause of structural damage. Nevertheless, their ability to excavate wood helps in forest decomposition. The genus includes over 1,000 species. They also farm aphids. In their farming, the ants protect the aphids from predators (usually other insects) while they excrete a sugary fluid called honeydew, which the ants get by stroking the aphids with their antennae.
60 branches of this genus, most-observed first
True Carpenter Ants
subgenusCamponotus
Tanaemyrmex
subgenusTanaemyrmex
Cleft-lip Carpenter ants
subgenusMyrmentoma
Myrmothrix
subgenusMyrmothrix
Myrmosericus
subgenusMyrmosericus
Myrmobrachys
subgenusMyrmobrachys
Myrmepomis
subgenusMyrmepomis
Myrmophyma
subgenusMyrmophyma
Monster-head Carpenter Ants
subgenusMyrmosaulus
Balbyter Sugar Ants
subgenusMyrmopiromis
Myrmaphaenus
subgenusMyrmaphaenus
Orthonotomyrmex
subgenusOrthonotomyrmex
Myrmamblys
subgenusMyrmamblys
Myrmocladoecus
subgenusMyrmocladoecus
Myrmosphincta
subgenusMyrmosphincta
Thlipsepinotus
subgenusThlipsepinotus
Myrmotarsus
subgenusMyrmotarsus
Paramyrmamblys
subgenusParamyrmamblys
Myrmotrema
subgenusMyrmotrema
Myrmostenus
subgenusMyrmostenus
Dendromyrmex
subgenusDendromyrmex
Pseudocolobopsis
subgenusPseudocolobopsis
Myrmopelta
subgenusMyrmopelta
Myrmosaga
subgenusMyrmosaga
Myrmisolepis
subgenusMyrmisolepis
Myrmopsamma
subgenusMyrmopsamma
Myrmeurynota
subgenusMyrmeurynota
Myrmomalis
subgenusMyrmomalis
Hypercolobopsis
subgenusHypercolobopsis
Mayria
subgenusMayria
Myrmespera
subgenusMyrmespera
Myrmoplatypus
subgenusMyrmoplatypus
Camponotus ceriseipes
speciesCamponotus ceriseipes
Myrmoplatys
subgenusMyrmoplatys
Camponotus johnclarki
speciesCamponotus johnclarki
Myrmoxygenys
subgenusMyrmoxygenys
Camponotus armstrongi
speciesCamponotus armstrongi
Forelophilus
subgenusForelophilus
Phasmomyrmex
subgenusPhasmomyrmex
Karavaievia
subgenusKaravaievia
Camponotus cameratus
speciesCamponotus cameratus
Camponotus peleliuensis
speciesCamponotus peleliuensis
Myrmonesites
subgenusMyrmonesites
Camponotus prosseri
speciesCamponotus prosseri
Myrmopalpella
subgenusMyrmopalpella
Camponotus flavicomans
speciesCamponotus flavicomans
Camponotus helvus
speciesCamponotus helvus
Myrmacrhaphe
subgenusMyrmacrhaphe
Camponotus chalceoides
speciesCamponotus chalceoides
Camponotus wanangus
speciesCamponotus wanangus
Camponotus macareaveyi
speciesCamponotus macareaveyi
Camponotus meghalayaensis
speciesCamponotus meghalayaensis
Camponotus stefani
speciesCamponotus stefani
Camponotus arenatus
speciesCamponotus arenatus
Rhinomyrmex
subgenusRhinomyrmex
Camponotus constructor
speciesCamponotus constructor
Camponotus branneri
speciesCamponotus branneri
Camponotus marianensis
speciesCamponotus marianensis
Camponotus discors
speciesCamponotus discors
Camponotus insipidus
speciesCamponotus insipidus
Where it lives
Recorded sightings
—
geo-referenced records in GBIF, from museums, herbaria and field observers.
Drag the globe to turn it. Dots are where records exist, not a range map; darker means more records.
In the stacks
Searching the stacks…
Every page naming Camponotus in the Biodiversity Heritage Library →
This page is assembled live from iNaturalist, GBIF, Wikipedia, the Source Library and the Internet Archive. It is not yet part of the hand-edited codex. iNaturalist taxon 62781.