Diet

• Omnivorous, feeding on honeydew from aphids, scale insects, and treehoppers, as well as nectar, plant sap, fruits, fungi, dead insects, and other arthropods.

• Workers also prey on small insects and scavenge carrion to provide protein for developing larvae.

• Frequently forages on vegetation, tree trunks, and the forest floor.

Range

• Native to Mexico, Central America, and much of northern South America.

• In Mexico, it occurs on both the Pacific and Gulf slopes, including Guerrero and the Zihuatanejo region.

• Common in tropical and subtropical lowland forests.

Habitat

• Inhabits tropical dry forests, tropical rainforests, secondary forests, woodland edges, mangroves, plantations, orchards, and gardens.

• Nests in dead branches, hollow twigs, rotting logs, beneath bark, tree cavities, and occasionally in wooden structures.

• Workers forage both in the forest canopy and on the ground, often following well-established trails.

Size

• Worker length: 5–10 mm (0.2–0.4 in)

• Major worker: Up to 12 mm (0.5 in)

• Queen length: 13–17 mm (0.5–0.7 in)

• Colonies typically contain several hundred to several thousand workers.