 Despite their ferocity , adults are nectarivores , consuming honeydew ( a sweet , sticky liquid found on leaves , deposited from various insects ) , nectar , and other sweet substances . The larvae , however , are carnivorous . After they reach a certain size , they are fed insects that foragers capture and kill . The workers also regurgitate food for other ants to consume . Young ants are rarely fed food regurgitated by adults . Adult workers prey on a variety of insects and arthropods , such as beetles , caterpillars , earwigs , Ithone fusca moths , Perga saw flies , and spiders . Other prey include invertebrates such as bees , cockroaches , crickets , wasps and other ants ; in particular , workers prey on Orthocrema ants ( a subgenus of Crematogaster ) and Camponotus , although this is risky since these ants are able to call for help through chemical signals . Slaters , earthworms , scale insects , frogs , lizards , grass seeds , possum feces and kangaroo feces are also collected as food . Flies such as the housefly and blowfly are consumed . Some species , such as M. pilosula , will only attack small fly species and ignore larger ones . Nests of the social spider Delena cancerides are often invaded by M. pyriformis ants , and nests once housing these spiders are filled with debris such as twigs and leaves by the workers , rendering them useless . These " scorched earth " tactics prevent the spiders competing with the ants . M. gulosa attacks Christmas beetles , but workers later bury them . 
