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  9. ›Formicoidea
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  11. ›Formicine Ants
  12. ›Camponotine Ants
  13. ›Camponotus
True Carpenter Ants
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True Carpenter Ants

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.

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31 branches of this group, most-observed first

Eastern Black Carpenter Ant

speciesCamponotus pennsylvanicus

Ferruginous Carpenter Ant

speciesCamponotus chromaiodes

Hairy Carpenter Ant

speciesCamponotus vagus

Western Black Carpenter Ant

speciesCamponotus modoc

Brown-black Carpenter Ant

speciesCamponotus ligniperda

American Carpenter Ant

speciesCamponotus americanus

Hercules Carpenter Ant

speciesCamponotus herculeanus

New York Carpenter Ant

speciesCamponotus novaeboracensis

Japanese Carpenter Ant

speciesCamponotus japonicus

Hairy Smooth Carpenter Ant

speciesCamponotus laevissimus

Texas Carpenter Ant

speciesCamponotus texanus

Camponotus obscuripes

speciesCamponotus obscuripes

Hairless Smooth Carpenter Ant

speciesCamponotus laevigatus

Camponotus atrox

speciesCamponotus atrox

Camponotus clarithorax

speciesCamponotus clarithorax

Camponotus saxatilis

speciesCamponotus saxatilis

Camponotus formosensis

speciesCamponotus formosensis

Schaeffer's Carpenter Ant

speciesCamponotus schaefferi

Camponotus spanis

speciesCamponotus spanis

Yogi Carpenter Ant

speciesCamponotus yogi

Camponotus hemichlaena

speciesCamponotus hemichlaena

Camponotus fuscivillosus

speciesCamponotus fuscivillosus

Johnson's Carpenter Ant

speciesCamponotus johnsoni

Camponotus albivillosus

speciesCamponotus albivillosus

Camponotus tonkinus

speciesCamponotus tonkinus

Camponotus aterrimus

speciesCamponotus aterrimus

Camponotus reichardti

speciesCamponotus reichardti

Camponotus punctatissimus

speciesCamponotus punctatissimus

Camponotus cilicicus

speciesCamponotus cilicicus

Camponotus keiferi

speciesCamponotus keiferi

Camponotus yessensis

speciesCamponotus yessensis

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Where it lives

Recorded sightings

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geo-referenced records in GBIF, from museums, herbaria and field observers.

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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 519191.