harvester ant

American  

noun

1. any of several red or black ants, especially of the genus Pogonomyrmex, of the southwestern U.S., that feed on and store the seeds of grasses.

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Etymology

Origin of harvester ant

First recorded in 1880–85

Example Sentences

When finished, the harvester ant would shake the smaller ants off, sometimes so forcefully that she flipped onto her back before quickly moving away.

From Science Daily • Apr. 14, 2026

The giant African harvester ant - or Messor cephalotes - is the largest of its species and can grow to around 20mm, with the queen growing up to 25mm.

From BBC • Apr. 14, 2025

Given these size constraints, harvester ant hills are hot spots for what scientists call microvertebrate fossils, which are animal fossils too small to see without a microscope.

From New York Times • Jul. 1, 2022

Most species of harvester ant live in subterranean burrows that sit beneath mounds of dirt.

From New York Times • Jul. 1, 2022

Chadronian fossils were discovered by Raymond Alf and members of his field parties in several harvester ant mounds built in exposures of the Chadron Formation in Sec.

From Records of the Fossil Mammal Sinclairella, Family Apatemyidae, From the Chadronian and Orellan by Clemens, William Alvin