Formica rufa, commonly known as the southern wood is commonly found throughout southern England in both coniferous and broad leaf broken woodland. They are the largest native ant species of the British Isles with workers reaching up to 10mm in length. They have large mandibles and like most other wood ant species are able to dispense formic acid from their abdomens as a defence (a member of the F. rufa group preparing to do so is shown in the video below).
Formica rufa is primarily a predatory ant, its diet consisting mainly on insects and other invertebrates found near to the nest, particularly aphids harvested from the surrounding trees, so much so that F. rufa is sometimes used in the forestry indsutry, being introduced into areas as a form of pest management.
F. rufa nests are often found in woodland clearings, where the sun's rays can reach them. The nests can reach several metres in height and diameter. It is a highly polygynous and often re-adopts post-nuptial queens from its own mother colony, leading to old, multi gallery nests which may contain up to one hundred egg-producing females. Formica rufa is aggressively territorial, and will often attack and displace other ant species. Nuptial flights take place during the springtime and are often marked by savage battles between neighbouring colonies as territorial boundaries are established.
The species can also establish nests using the mechanism of temporary social parasitism, the hosts being species of the Formica fusca group, notably F. fusca and F. lemani, although incipient F. rufa colonies have also been recorded from nests of F. glebaria, F. cunnicularia and similar species including the Lasius genus.
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