Found near Lucerne Valley, CA in a small vegetable garden during mid-July
Habitat is desert scrub, typical desert conditions, very rural area
Queen is approximately 10mm long, workers roughly ~3mm
Queen coloration & texture: bright red with shiny striped black and yellow gaster
Worker coloration & texture: bright red thorax with black head and black and yellow striped gasters
Distinguishing characteristics: one petiole node, see below for head and mandible shape, antennal segments also shown
Forms cocoons, extremely sensitive to light & vibration
Apologies for the poor image quality, anyone have any ideas?
