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Do ants help pollinate raspberries?
Quick find: this post is based on the published summary (abstract) of the study, not the full paper.
The most common visitors to the raspberry flowers were not bees. On six commercial raspberry blocks near Coffs Harbour, New South Wales, ants were the most abundant flower visitor, and ant pollination gave heavier, higher-quality fruit than flowers that were bagged.
Ants turn up in almost every environment, yet their potential as pollinators is still relatively unknown, especially on farms. Researchers from the University of New England and the University of Helsinki, with a co-author from Costa Group, investigated whether ants could be pollinators of commercial raspberry crops grown in protected cropping (Malm et al., 2026).
What this means for your grow
If you grow raspberries, this study suggests the ants on the flowers may be part of the pollination work: the three ant species collected most often all carried raspberry pollen, and ant pollination gave heavier, better fruit than bagged flowers. Open pollination still gave the best results, so in this study ants alone did not match it. The authors suggest that managing crops and habitat for a diverse range of insect visitors can improve pollination. These results come from one growing region near Coffs Harbour, and the published summary does not give the size of the differences.
What did they test and find?
- The question: how important ants are as pollinators of commercial raspberry (Rubus idaeus).
- The trial: the team ran visitation surveys and measured pollen loads and fruit set with and without ants, across six commercial blocks in a single growing region near Coffs Harbour. The blocks were 15 to 3500 m apart and were chosen to have the same cultivar and flowering stage.
- Who visits: ants were the most abundant flower visitor, followed by European honey bees (Apis mellifera), endemic Australian stingless bees (Tetragonula carbonaria) and then flies.
- When they visit: the insect groups visited at different times of day. Ants were more active before midday, and honey bees in the afternoon.
- Pollen on the ants: the three ant species collected most often, Iridomyrmex mjobergi, Iridomyrmex suchieri and Nylanderia obscura, all carried raspberry pollen on their bodies.
- The fruit: ant pollination gave heavier and higher-quality fruit than bagged (non-pollinated) flowers, though open pollination gave the best results.
What could it mean?
The authors conclude that ants support fruit development and quality, and that bringing diverse insect visitors into crop and habitat management can improve pollination efficiency and agricultural outcomes. For now this is a result for commercial raspberry growers and the people who study crop pollination. It is not a tested method for a home patch.
What were the limitations?
The authors note that replication was limited by the availability of suitable blocks. All six blocks were in a single growing region. Other limitations are not reported in the published abstract.
Trial details
- Who: School of Environmental and Rural Science, University of New England, Armidale, New South Wales; Department of Agricultural Science and Helsinki Institute of Sustainability Science, University of Helsinki, Finland; Department of Entomology, Michigan State University, USA; and Costa Group Pty Ltd, Upper Corindi, New South Wales (the authors’ affiliations).
- Where: six commercial raspberry blocks in a single growing region near Coffs Harbour, New South Wales, Australia, spaced 15 to 3500 m apart. The paper’s title describes them as protected cropping systems.
- Crop: raspberry (Rubus idaeus), commercial crops. Blocks were selected for uniform cultivar and flowering stage.
- Design: flower visitation surveys, pollen loads, and fruit set in the presence and absence of ants. Fruit from ant-mediated pollination was compared with bagged (non-pollinated) flowers and open pollination.
- Results: flower visitors in order of abundance: ants, European honey bees, endemic Australian stingless bees, then flies. Ants more active before midday, honey bees in the afternoon. Iridomyrmex mjobergi, Iridomyrmex suchieri and Nylanderia obscura all carried raspberry pollen. Ant-mediated pollination gave heavier and higher-quality fruit than bagged flowers; open pollination gave the best results.
- Funding: Australian Research Council (FT210100851) and Hort Innovation (MT22007), as listed in the paper’s Crossref record.
- Publication: Agricultural and Forest Entomology 28(4), 648-657, published online 18 June 2026, https://doi.org/10.1111/afe.70066. Licence: CC BY 4.0.
- Not reported in the published abstract: the cultivar; the type of protected cropping structure; the dates and length of the study; the number of flowers, insects and surveys; how ants were let in or kept out; how fruit quality was measured; the size of the differences and their statistics; substrate, lighting, climate and nutrition; and conflicts of interest.
Links
- The study: Ants contribute to raspberry pollination in protected cropping systems
- The institution: School of Environmental and Rural Science, University of New England
References
- Malm, P., Dawson, B. M., Preradovic, J., Ekroos, J., Rader, R., Shermeister, B., & Schmidt, L. A. (2026). Ants contribute to raspberry pollination in protected cropping systems. Agricultural and Forest Entomology, 28(4), 648-657. https://doi.org/10.1111/afe.70066