Pharaoh ant: Where It Lives, Map & Facts

Where the pharaoh ant lives – recorded in 27 countries, with quick facts from Wikidata and an introduction from Wikipedia.

Scientific name	Monomorium pharaonis
Group	Bees, wasps & ants
Found in	27 countries
Continents	Africa, Asia, Europe, North America, Oceania, South America
Class	Insect
Order	Hymenoptera
Family	Formicidae

Where does the pharaoh ant live?

Open-licence (CC0 / CC BY) wild records published on GBIF place the pharaoh ant in 27 countries and territories across Africa, Asia, Europe, North America, Oceania and South America. In Belgium, Brazil, Costa Rica, Germany, France, Gabon, United Kingdom, India, Mexico, Portugal, Romania, Sweden it is listed as introduced (GRIIS checklists via GBIF).

Costa Rica (introduced)
Papua New Guinea
United States
Ivory Coast
Madagascar
Belgium (introduced)
Finland
Portugal (introduced)
Ghana
Czech Republic
Iceland
Brazil (introduced)
United Kingdom (introduced)
India (introduced)
Seychelles
Canada
Malaysia
Germany (introduced)
Mexico (introduced)
Réunion
Russia
Gabon (introduced)
Romania (introduced)
Sweden (introduced)
Vanuatu
France (introduced)
Panama

Countries with at least a handful of records (a minimum share of the species’ records, to leave out vagrants and escapes). Records with coordinates only; captive and fossil records excluded.

What kind of animal is the pharaoh ant?

The pharaoh ant (Monomorium pharaonis) is an insect in the order Hymenoptera and the family Formicidae, genus Monomorium. (Taxonomy from Wikidata.)

About the pharaoh ant

The pharaoh ant (Monomorium pharaonis) is a small (2 mm) yellow or light brown, almost transparent ant notorious for being a major indoor nuisance pest, especially in hospitals. A cryptogenic species, it has now been introduced to virtually every area of the world, including Europe, the Americas, Australasia and Southeast Asia. It is a major pest in the United States, Australia, and Europe. The ant's common name is possibly derived from the belief that it was one of the Egyptian (pharaonic) plagues.

This species is polygynous—each colony contains many queens—leading to unique caste interactions and colony dynamics. This also allows the colony to fragment into bud colonies quickly.

Pharaoh ants are a tropical species, but they also thrive in buildings almost anywhere, even in temperate regions provided central heating is present.

Text in “About” is quoted from the Wikipedia article Pharaoh ant (revision 1380357773), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: lead section excerpted verbatim, formatting removed. Quick facts, taxonomy and status: Wikidata Q1141346 (CC0). Countries and pin: GBIF.org occurrence records (CC0 / CC BY 4.0).