Posted: Sun Jul 24, 2005 8:17 pm Post subject: Ant damage on mandarins
Ants damaging mandarin oranges.
Last April I observed something new for me, grey field ants (Formica) damaging mandarin orange fruits.
The ants were cutting the edges of leaves and apparently licking up the exudates. They were also scraping the young fruit with their mandibles, and I observed numerous scrape-marks on other fruit. The scrape marks were not immediately evident where the ant was presently scraping. I suppose it’s possible that the marks were made by thrips, but I am convinced it was the ants.
I made these observations April 29, 2004, in the Dinuba area. This was an organic block, so I can’t just use Clinch.
Devin Carroll
10-10-2007
After talking with Robert Walther at the recent AAIE Citrus Roundtable, I think it's possible that the original damage here was caused by earwigs. The ants may have been licking up the exudates from the wounds caused by earwigs. Robert has observed common damage to young fruit and young leaves by earwigs. They chew through the flower and damage the fruit underneath.
Devin Carroll