Abstract Nesting in deserts presents major challenges due to extreme heat and unstable sandy soils. The Saharan silver ant ( Cataglyphis bombycina ) is known for its rapid running that helps avoid heat during foraging. However, how silver ants manage to construct nests in such fine and unstable sand is not well understood. To clarify how silver ants build nests in such a challenging environment, we conducted field observations using a high‐speed camera. Silver ants carried pellets of excavated sand out of the nest using their mandibles, and on their way back, they performed a distinct sand‐shoveling behavior in which they adopted a quadrupedal stance and rapidly swung their forelegs to throw sand backward. They used fast leg movements, averaging 48 swings per second, to shovel sand from their nest entrances. This behavior was observed in multiple wild colonies and in the laboratory. The leg movement speed closely matched their known stride frequency during running. Our results show that the ability to move the legs at very high speed serves multiple functions, including rapid locomotion to avoid heat and efficient sand removal during nest construction. This behavioral flexibility may allow silver ants to inhabit sandy niches that are often difficult for smaller insects to manage. Our study highlights how environmental pressures can shape multifunctional traits in extreme habitats.
Maeno et al. (2026) studied this question.