Formica integra (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). 3. Trial introduction into Florida.

A small number of nests of the red wood ant, Formica integra Nylander, from west-central Georgia were transplanted to a pine and oak site near Gainesville, FL during 1973, with food and protection initially provided. The ants readily preyed on numerous arthropods and attended aphids to obtain honeydew; colonies persisted for periods up to 14 weeks. When protective screens were removed, all F. integra ants were killed by the native Florida carpenter ant, Camponotus abdominalis floridanus (Buckley), a result predicted earlier by interspecific confrontation tests in the laboratory.