Question - Are they Jumping ants on the BHP.

[neilmny]

In my wanderings last week I observed a lot of ants on the Bogong High Plains.
At one point I sat down on a comfortable rock to take in the view and withing seconds my feet were
coated in the little buggers. I had hadn't noticed any prior to sitting down.
Regularly along the track some appeared to be Jumping Ants but lacked the agression of the lowland ones.
Was it Jumping Ants that I saw?

This led to thinking, where could you camp and not have the buggers attack?

[ErichFromm]

I have no idea what jumping ants are: but what about a hammock? One of the benefits is being out of the way of most critters...

[stry]

In my wanderings last week I observed a lot of ants on the Bogong High Plains.
At one point I sat down on a comfortable rock to take in the view and withing seconds my feet were
coated in the little buggers. I had hadn't noticed any prior to sitting down.
Regularly along the track some appeared to be Jumping Ants but lacked the agression of the lowland ones.
Was it Jumping Ants that I saw?

This led to thinking, where could you camp and not have the buggers attack?

If your (exposed?) feet were covered and you didn't get bitten, they weren't jack jumpers. 1/2 inch long, orange nippers. Easy to pick. I might have encountered some without contrasting nippers at some time, but not sure.

If there is a nest nearby, just keep a distance.

[neilmny]

Thanks for the replies.

No they don't have the characteristic orange nippers, they just look the same but all black and not so jittery.
They don't seem angry like a Jumping Ant (Jack Jumper) either, but they were all along the tracks.

The question re where to camp was more a reaction to how many ants could be encountered.
Had me wondering how tyhey survive under the snow and ice for 4 or 5 months.

I don't think I'd Hammock on the Bogong High Plains though ErichFromm. Things can turn very ugly up there temperature and precipitation wise.

[ErichFromm]

With the right accessories you can use hammocks in fairly extreme environments. Look up Sean Emery (Shug) on youtube: he regularly takes his hammock out in heavy snow and below freezing.