Meat ant of the colony may deteriorate from overshadowing. Members of an affected meat ant colony later move to a nearby satellite nest that is placed in a suitable area, while invading banded sugar ants fill nest galleries up with a black resinous material. Meat ants sometimes attract cats because of the chemicals they secrete (dihydronepetalactone, isodihydronepetalactone and iridomyrmecin). Meat ants are generally intolerant of myrmecophiles (which are insects or other organisms that share positive interspecies associations with ants) living in their colonies, but "Cyclotorna" larvae are known to dwell in colonies. Although "Sphallomorpha" larvae sometimes prey on workers as discussed earlier,
Myrmecia (ant) brevinoda" was first discovered in New Zealand in 1940, and the ant was recorded in Devonport in 1948, 1965 and 1981, where a single nest was destroyed. Sources suggest the ant was introduced to New Zealand through human activity; they were found inside a wooden crate brought from Australia. While no eradication attempt was made by the New Zealand government, the ant has not been found in the country since 1981 and is presumed to have been eradicated. Ants of this genus prefer to inhabit grasslands, forests, heath, urban areas and woodland. Nests are found in "Callitris" forest, dry marri