Recently, my neighborhood has been filled with profusions of pink and white -- the rhododendrons are blooming. Whenever it hasn't been raining, wasps and bees have been flying among the flowers, collecting nectar and pollen.
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| A bumble bee (Bombus sp.) hovers in front of a rhododendron flower. |
The flowers have also been attracting ants, and in great numbers. Many of the flowers have several ants busily gathering nectar even when the rain keeps other flower visitors away. However, unlike the wasps and bees, the ants do not contribute to pollination of the flowers.
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| Ants gathering nectar in a rhododendron flower. |
As I observed the ants, I noticed that the white rhododendron outside my building had an abundance of dead ants on its flower stems in addition to the live ants in the flowers.
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| One of the many dead ants on the white rhododendron flower stems. |
At first, I thought there must be a predator roaming the rhododendron and taking advantage of the plentiful supply of ants. I inspected the stems, but could not find any sign of a predator. Instead, I found an ant that was in a different sort of trouble.
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| An ant at the base of a rhododendron flower. |
Its legs had become trapped. They seemed to be entangled in the fine hairs of the flower stem, which may also have been sticky. Despite the ant's struggles, it was unable to free itself and eventually expired without making any further progress down the stem.
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| The ant trying to free itself from the flower stem. |
Although I have not found a description of sticky flower stems in rhododendrons, it has been suggested that such stems can help keep nectar robbers and thieves (such as ants) out of the flowers of other plant species, thereby reserving the nectar for pollinators.
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