Msstate Logo

Ants in Buccaneer State Park, Hancock County, Mississippi, June 2005 [MS State Park Ants]

Joe A. MacGown

          While visiting the Waveland area in Hancock County, Mississippi with my family and friends (David Cross and Juliet Tang), I collected a few ants at Buccaneer State Park. We camped there for a couple of days and used the park as a base of operations for our sight-seeing and kayaking adventures. The park was just across the road from the bay, making it very convenient for us. The park was greatly not very diverse, but was mostly a flat sandy area with scattered pines and oaks. We didn't spend a great deal of time there, but I did manage to collect a few ants. A return visit was planned to specifically collect ants, but unfortunately Hurricane Katrina effectively wiped out the park in the coming Fall.

List of ant species collected

Aphaenogaster carolinensis (Wheeler)
Brachymyrmex patagonicus Mayr
Camponotus castaneus (Latreille)
Cyphomyrmex rimosus (Spinola)
Hypoponera opaciceps (Mayr)
Monomorium minimum (Buckley)
Pheidole dentata Mayr
Solenopsis invicta Buren