Searching for a hero ant

We look after the largest known population of a special butterfly called the Mallee Bronze Azure butterfly (Ogyris subterrestris). This butterfly is entirely dependent on a Sugar Ant (Camponotus terebrans) to raise the butterfly caterpillars underground in the ant nest. The ant is the hero of this relationship. Without large colonies of the ant there would be no butterflies.

There is only one secure population of this butterfly in Victoria and a couple of smaller populations in South Australia. It would be fantastic if we found some more! The Mallee is a big place so I’m ever hopeful. So, I’ve prepared this identification sheet to help you find the hero ant for the Mallee Bronze Azure butterfly. You can download an A3 version here.

What to look for

Our hero ant is active at night, so you’ll need a torch. Look for ants coming and going from sandy nests at the base of trees like Black Box. Their colonies can stretch for hundreds of metres, so there will often be several nests. You might also find them clustered on a patch of kangaroo wee, which is why we call them Piss Ants! They can be mistaken for Spiny Ants, which are also out at night, but the ID sheet shows you how to tell them apart: check for spines on the middle section of the ant.

While you're at the nest, look closely at the tree trunk around the entrance. You’ll need a magnifying glass to see the tiny butterfly eggs. New eggs are dark, and hatched ones are pale.

I am eternally grateful to Daniel Kurek from the Entomological Society of Victoria for sharing his knowledge of ants and photography skills.

In 2022, we received funding to explore “What makes the Mallee Bronze Azure butterfly so rare?” This project was funded by the Victorian Government through a Landcare grant from the Mallee CMA.