I watched as this Worker Ant repeatedly rubbed the abdomen of this Peach-Potato Aphid (a major vector of virus diseases by the way) until it pulled back its cornicles (I think that’s what those little horn-like things are called) and excreted a tiny droplet of honeydew (look closely and you should be able to see it). I’ve noticed many Ants in my garden this summer actually carrying “cow” Aphids. I think that’s because they’re taking them below ground to protect them from all the
rain we’re having. Ants absolutely love honeydew and you can often see excesses of it on plants like a silvery-grey coating (as in the photo). Sometimes it appears black, but that’s a type of fungus growing on it. These Aphids are in my apple tree and I can always tell they’re there because they cleverly try to protect themselves from the elements by rolling the leaves into a tube.