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Benjamin Palm @haplodiploid.bsky.social · 06/08/2026

Yesterday I finally found an ant I’ve been looking for for many years: Polyrhachis muelleri, the only ant species known to (always) have green larvae! Its cocoons are so thin that even the pupae appear green until sclerotization :) Northern Bali, Indonesia 🇮🇩

Multiple black Polyrhachis muelleri workers guarding pupae on the underside of a leaf. The translucent cocoons to the left are younger, and the green pupae show through. The pupae to the right are older, and the workers within are already black and sclerotized.

A green ant larva lying on a silk web on the underside of a leaf.

A single Polyrhachis muelleri worker walking to the left side of the image on top of a silk web.

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Benjamin Palm @haplodiploid.bsky.social · 06/08/2026

Their nests are quite spectacular imo, even by Polyrhachis standards. The small colonies build them on the underside of a single leaf, covering it with an oval silk web. But unlike most other Polyrhachis, they don’t cover the web with debris and it is left completely bare. Good camouflage!

Silk nest of Polyrhachis muelleri ants attached to the underside of a large green leaf.

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