Red harvester ant

Pogonomyrmex barbatus is a species of harvester ant from the genus Pogonomyrmex. Its common names include red ant and red harvester ant.[1] These large (5– to 7-mm) ants prefer arid chaparral habitats and are native to the Southwestern United States.[2] Nests are made underground (up to 2.5 m deep) in exposed areas. Their diets consist primarily of seeds, and they consequently participate in myrmecochory, an ant-plant interaction through which the ants gain nutrients and the plants benefit through seed dispersal. Red harvester ants are often mistaken for fire ants, but are not closely related to any fire ant species, native or introduced.