Formica rufa

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Formica rufa
A Formica rufa sideview.jpg
Formica rufa worker
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hymenoptera
Family: Formicidae
Subfamily: Formicinae
Genus: Formica
Species:
F. rufa
Binomial name
Formica rufa

Formica rufa, also known as the red wood ant, southern wood ant, or horse ant, is a boreal member of the Formica rufa group of ants, and is the type species for that group, being described already by Linnaeus. [2] It is native to Eurasia, with a recorded distribution stretching from the middle of Scandinavia to the northern Iberia and Anatolia, and from Great Britain to Lake Baikal, [3] [2] with unconfirmed reportings of it also to the Russian Far East. [3] There are claims that it can be found in North America, [4] but this is not confirmed in specialised literature, [3] and no recent publication where North American wood ants are listed mentions it as present, [5] [3] while records from North America are all listed as dubious or unconfirmed in a record compilation. [6] Workers' head and thorax are colored red and the abdomen brownish-black, usually with a dorsal dark patches on the head and promensonotum, [7] although some individuals may be more uniform reddish and even have some red on the part of the gastern facing the body. [2] In order to separate them from closely related species, specimens needs to be inspected under magnification, where difference in hairyness are among the telling characteristics, with Formica rufa being more hairy than per example Formica polyctena but less hairy than Formica lugubris . [2] Workers are polymorphic, measuring 4.5–9 mm in length. [7] They have large mandibles, and like many other ant species, they are able to spray formic acid from their abdomens as a defence. [3] Formic acid was first extracted in 1671 by the English naturalist John Ray by distilling a large number of crushed ants of this species. [8] Adult wood ants primarily feed on honeydew from aphids. Some groups form large networks of connected nests with multiple queen colonies, while others have single-queen colonies.

Contents

Description

A caterpillar being bitten by F. rufa ForrmicaRufaWithCaterpillar.JPG
A caterpillar being bitten by F. rufa
Patrolling F. rufa Formica rufa on patrol.jpg
Patrolling F. rufa

Nests of these ants are large, conspicuous, dome-shaped mounds of grass, twigs, or conifer needles, [4] often built against a rotting stump, usually situated in woodland clearings where the sun's rays can reach them. Large colonies may have 100,000 to 400,000 workers and 100 queens. [4] F. rufa is highly polygynous and often readopts postnuptial queens from its own mother colony, leading to old, multigallery nests that may contain well over 100 egg-producing females. These colonies often may measure several metres in height and diameter. F. rufa is aggressively territorial, and often attacks and removes other ant species from the area. Nuptial flights take place during the springtime and are often marked by savage battles between neighbouring colonies as territorial boundaries are re-established. [9] New nests are established by budding from existing nests in the spring, [4] or by the mechanism of temporary social parasitism, the hosts being species of the F. fusca group, notably F. fusca and F. lemani , although incipient F. rufa colonies have also been recorded from nests of F. glebaria , F. cunnicularia , and similar species including the genus Lasius . An F. rufa queen ousts the nest's existing queen, lays eggs, and the existing workers care for her offspring until the nest is taken over.

Detail of the head. Picture from antweb.org casent0173863 Formica rufa casent0173863 head 1.jpg
Detail of the head. Picture from antweb.org casent0173863

Diet

F. rufa nest Formica rufa nest 2.jpg
F. rufa nest
F. rufa nest in meadow near Rila, Bulgaria Ant-hill-in-Rila.jpg
F. rufa nest in meadow near Rila, Bulgaria

These ants' primary diet is aphid honeydew, but they also prey on invertebrates such as insects and arachnids; [4] they are voracious scavengers. Foraging trails may extend 100 m. [4] Larger workers have been observed to forage farther away from the nest. [10] F. rufa commonly is used in forestry and often is introduced into an area as a form of pest management.

Behavior

Nursing

Worker ants in F. rufa have been observed to practice parental care or perform cocoon nursing. A worker ant goes through a sensitive phase, where it becomes accustomed to a chemical stimulus emitted by the cocoon. The sensitive phase occurs at an early and specific period. An experiment was conducted by Moli et al. to test how worker ants react to different types of cocoon: homospecific and heterospecific cocoons. If the worker ant is brought up in the absence of cocoons, it will show neither recognition nor nursing behaviour. Both types of cocoons are opened up by the workers and devoured for nutrients. When accustomed to only the homospecific cocoons, the workers collect both types of cocoons, but only place and protect the homospecific cocoons. The heterospecific cocoons are neglected and abandoned in the nest and eaten. Lastly, if heterospecific cocoons were injected with extract from the homospecific cocoons, the workers tend to both types of cocoons equally. This demonstrates that a chemical stimulus from the cocoons seems to be of paramount importance in prompting adoption behaviour in worker ants. However, the specific chemical / stimulus has not been identified. [11]

Foraging behaviour

The foraging behaviour of wood ants changes according to the environment. Wood ants have been shown to tend and harvest aphids and prey on and compete with, other predators for food resources. They tend to prey on the most plentiful members of the community whether they are in the canopies of trees or in the forest foliage. Wood ants seem to favour prey that lives in local canopies near their nest; however, when food resources dwindle, they seek other trees further from the nests and explore more trees instead of exploring the forest floor more thoroughly. [12] This makes foraging for food significantly less efficient, but the rest of the nest does not help the foraging ants. [13]

Kin behaviour

Wood ants have shown aggressive behaviour toward their own species in certain situations. [13] [14] Intraspecific competition usually occurs early in the spring between workers of competing nests. This aggression may be linked to the protection of maintaining territory and trail. By observing skirmishes and trail formation of wood ants, the territory surrounding each nest differs between seasons. Permanent foraging trails are reinforced each season, and if an ant from an alien species crossed it, hostile activity occurs. Most likely, the territory changes based on foraging patterns are influenced by seasonal changes. [13]

Ants recognize their nestmates through chemical signals. Failure in recognition causes the colony integrity to decay. Heavy metals accumulated through the environment alter the aggression levels. [15] This could be due to a variety of factors such as changes in physiological effect or changes in resource levels. The ants in these territories tend to be less productive and efficient. Increased resource competition would be expected to increase level of aggression, but this is not the case.

Colony structure

Different types of F. rufa group species have demonstrated different types of social interaction. Some groups are highly polygynous, with multiple queen colonies forming large networks of connected nests. Others are monogynous, with single-queen colonies. Different F. rufa ants from different regions have been recorded as having traits of being both polygynous and monogynous. The females in the F. rufa colonies that are monogynous separate by flight and establish new nests. Queens in polygynous nests form new nests in the vicinity of the original nest with the help of workers. [16] Through evolution, polygyny may have arisen through monogyny. One possibility is that monogynous nests due to environmental and physiological conditions may take up new queens. [17] [18] Sometimes in monogynous nests, daughters are recruited as new reproductives and the nest becomes polygynous. [19]

Nest splitting

Wood ants typically have multiple nests so they may relocate in case of drastic changes in the environment. This splitting of nests causes the creation of multiple daughter nests. Several reasons occur as to why wood ants move. Such as a change in availability of food resources, attack by the population of another colony, or a change in the state of the nest itself. During this time, workers, queens, and the brood are transferred from the original nest to the daughter nest in a bilateral direction. The goal is to move to the daughter nest, but the transporting ants may bring an individual back to the original nest. The splitting process may last from a week to over a month. [20]

Population

Turnover rate of wood ant nests is very quick. Within a period of three years, Klimetzek counted 248 nests within a 1,640 hectare area under study. Furthermore, no evidence of a correlation between nest age and mortality was found. Smaller nests had lower life expectancy compared to larger nests. The size of the nests increased as the nest aged. [21]

Bee paralysis virus

In 2008, the chronic bee paralysis virus was reported for the first time in this and another species of ants, Camponotus vagus . CBPV affects bees, ants, and mites. [22]

Related Research Articles

<i>Formica exsecta</i> Species of ant

Formica exsecta is a species of ant found from Western Europe to Asia.

<i>Formica rufibarbis</i> Species of ant

Formica rufibarbis is a European formicine ant of the Formica fusca group. In the classification by Auguste Forel, it is treated in the subgenus Serviformica. F. rufibarbis is subject to a Species Action Plan (SAP) in England, where it is known from only two locations, although it is not considered to be at risk on continental Europe.

<i>Formica</i> Genus of ants

Formica is a genus of ants of the family Formicidae, including species commonly known as wood ants, mound ants, thatching ants, and field ants. Formica is the type genus of the Formicidae, and of the subfamily Formicinae. The type species of genus Formica is the European red wood ant Formica rufa. Ants of this genus tend to be between 4 and 8 mm long. Ants belonging to the Formica genus possess a single knob or bump located between their thorax and abdomen. These ants primarily feed on honeydew, a sugary liquid produced by aphids. Formica ants appear to take on a shepherding role with smaller aphids, relocating them to different parts of plants to ensure a continuous food source for the aphids. By doing so, the ants can establish a relatively sustainable honeydew supply for both themselves and their colony.

<i>Formica rufa</i> species group Group of ants

The Formica rufa group is a subgeneric group within the genus Formica, first proposed by William Morton Wheeler. This group contains the mound-building species of Formica commonly termed "wood ants" or "thatch-mound ants", which build prominent nests consisting of a mound of grass, litter, or conifer needles. The species Formica rufa or the red wood ant is the type species of this subgroup.

<i>Formica cunicularia</i> Species of ant

Formica cunicularia is a species of ant found all over Europe. They are especially common in western Europe and southern England, but they can be found from southern Scandinavia to northern Africa and from Portugal to the Urals. In England, Donisthorpe records the species as having occurred as far north as Bewdley in Worcestershire. In Formica cunicularia, the worker is an ashy grey black color and is usually 4.0–6.5 mm long. The males are found to have a uniformly dark body and are 8.0–9.0 mm long. The queen is yellowish red to dark black and is 7.5–9.0 mm.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carpenter ant</span> Genus of ants (Camponotus spp.)

Carpenter ants are large ants indigenous to many forested parts of the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pharaoh ant</span> Species of ant

The pharaoh ant is a small (2 mm) yellow or light brown, almost transparent ant notorious for being a major indoor nuisance pest, especially in hospitals. A cryptogenic species, it has now been introduced to virtually every area of the world, including Europe, the Americas, Australasia and Southeast Asia. It is a major pest in the United States, Australia, and Europe.

<i>Formica lugubris</i> Species of ant

Formica lugubris, also known as the hairy wood ant is commonly found in wooded upland areas across northern Eurasia. Colonies construct large thatched mound nests occupied by thousands of workers, and one or more queens. Workers look similar to other species of wood ants, but Formica lugubris workers can be identified by a fringe of hairs that reaches down to their eyes and prominent hairs between the facets of their compound eyes. Workers can reach sizes of up to 9 mm long; queens are larger, reaching 12 mm long.

<i>Formica polyctena</i> Species of ant

Formica polyctena is a species of European red wood ant in the genus Formica and large family Formicidae. The species was first described by Arnold Förster in 1850. The latin species name polyctena is from Greek and literally means 'many cattle', referring to the species' habit of farming aphids for honeydew food. It is found in many European countries. It is a eusocial species, that has a distinct caste system of sterile workers and a very small reproductive caste. The ants have a genetic based cue that allow them to identify which other ants are members of their nest and which are foreign individuals. When facing these types of foreign invaders the F. polyctena has a system to activate an alarm. It can release pheromones which can trigger an alarm response in other nearby ants.

<i>Formica pratensis</i> Species of ant

Formica pratensis, the black-backed meadow ant, is a species of European red wood ant in the family Formicidae.

Myrmecia inquilina is a species of ant endemic to Australia in the subfamily Myrmeciinae, first discovered in 1955 and described by Athol Douglas and William Brown Jr. in 1959. These ants are large, measuring 21.4 millimetres (0.84 in). During the time of its discovery, Douglas and Brown announced M. inquilina as the first social parasite among the primitive subfamilies, and today it is one of the two known Myrmecia species to have no worker caste. Two host species are known, Myrmecia nigriceps and Myrmecia vindex. Aggression between M. inquilina and its host species does not occur, and colonies may only produce M. inquilina brood months after the inquiline queens begin to lay their eggs. Queens eat the colony brood or trophic eggs, and other Myrmecia species may kill M. inquilina queens if they reject them. Due to its restricted distribution and threats to its habitat, the ant is "vulnerable" according to the IUCN Red List.

<i>Rossomyrmex</i> Genus of ants

Rossomyrmex is a genus of slave-making ant in the subfamily Formicinae. The genus consists of four species, each with a single host from the genus Proformica, and has a very wide range of distribution from China to southeastern Spain, from huge extended plains to the top of high mountains.

<i>Formica sanguinea</i> Species of ant

Formica sanguinea, or blood-red ant, is a species of facultative slave-maker ant in the genus Formica characterized by the ability to secrete formic acid. It ranges from Central and Northern Europe through Russia to Japan, China, the Korean Peninsula, Africa and also the United States. This species is coloured red and black with workers up to 7 mm long.

<i>Leptothorax acervorum</i> Species of ant

Leptothorax acervorum is a small brown to yellow ant in the subfamily Myrmicinae. It was first described by Johan Christian Fabricius in 1793. L. acervorum is vastly distributed across the globe, most commonly found in the coniferous forests of Central, Western and Northern Europe. The morphology of L. acervorum is extremely similar to that of other Leptothorax ants. The difference arises in the two-toned appearance of L. acervorum, with the head and metasoma being darker than the mesosoma segment of the body, and hair across its body. Following Bergmann's rule—unusually, for ectothermic animals—body size increases with latitude.

<i>Formica cinerea</i> Species of ant

Formica cinerea is a species of ant in the family Formicidae.

<i>Formica truncorum</i> Species of ant

Formica truncorum is a species of wood ant from the genus Formica. It is distributed across a variety of locations worldwide, including central Europe and Japan. Workers can range from 3.5 to 9.0mm and are uniquely characterized by small hairs covering their entire bodies. Like all other ants, F. truncorum is eusocial and demonstrates many cooperative behaviors that are unique to its order. Colonies are either monogynous, with one queen, or polygynous, with many queens, and these two types of colonies differ in many characteristics.

<i>Polyergus rufescens</i> Species of ant

Polyergus rufescens is a species of slave-making ant native to southern Europe and parts of Asia, commonly referred to as the European Amazon ant or as the slave-making ant. It is an obligatory social parasite, unable to feed itself or look after the colony and reliant on ants of another species to undertake these tasks. To replenish these servant ants, it raids nearby ant colonies and carries home pupae and larvae, and these are reared to provide future workers for the colony. A newly mated female P. rufescens needs to make its way into one of these "host" nests, kill the host queen, and be accepted by the host workers in her place.

<i>Lomechusa pubicollis</i> Species of beetle

Lomechusa pubicollis is a species of rove beetle in the family Staphylinidae. It is unusual in that its larvae develop in the nests of one species of ant and the immature adults overwinter in the nest of another species of ant. These beetles are highly specialised myrmecophiles, tricking the ants into caring for them, and one of about 125 species of invertebrates that rely on spending part of their lives in and around the nests of red wood ants.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ant supercolony</span> Exceptionally large ant colony

An ant supercolony is an exceptionally large ant colony, consisting of a high number of spatially separated but socially connected nests of a single ant species, spread over a large area without territorial borders. Supercolonies are typically polygynous, containing many egg-laying females. Workers and queens from different nests within the same supercolony can freely move among the nests, and all workers cooperate indiscriminately with each other in collecting food and care of the brood, and show no apparent mutual aggressive behavior.

References

  1. ↑ Social Insects Specialist Group (1996). "Formica rufa". The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 1996: e.T8645A12924924. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.1996.RLTS.T8645A12924924.en .
  2. 1 2 3 4 Seifert, Bernhard (2021). "A taxonomic revision of the Palaearctic members of the Formica rufa group (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) – the famous mound-building red wood ants". Myrmecological News. 31: 133–179. doi:10.25849/myrmecol.news_031:133.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Stockan, Jennie A. (2016). Wood Ant Ecology and Conservation. Cambridge University Press. p. 304. ISBN   9781107261402.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Robinson, William H. (2004). Urban Insects and Arachnids: A Handbook of Urban Entomology. Cambridge University Press. p. 247. ISBN   978-0521812535.
  5. ↑ Jurgensen, Martin F.; Storer, Andrew J.; Risch, Anita C. (2005). "Red wood ants in North America". Ann. Zool. Fennici: 235–242.
  6. ↑ "Antmaps.org - Formica rufa".
  7. 1 2 Collingwood, C.A. (1979). The Formicidae (Hymenoptera) of Fennoscandia and Denmark. Scandinavian Science Press LTD. p. 175. ISBN   978-90-04-27333-7.
  8. ↑ Charles Earle Raven (1986). John Ray, naturalist : his life and works. Cambridge University Press. ISBN   978-0-521-31083-3.
  9. ↑ "BBC - Nature's Top 40 - No. 39".
  10. ↑ Wright PJ, Bonser R, Chukwu UO (2000). "The size-distance relationship in the wood ant Formica rufa". Ecological Entomology. 25 (2): 226–233. Bibcode:2000EcoEn..25..226W. doi:10.1046/j.1365-2311.2000.00253.x. S2CID   84140245.
  11. ↑ Moli, Francesco Le; Passetti, Maria (1978). "Olfactory Learning Phenomena and Cocoon Nursing Behaviour in the Ant Formica Rufa L." Italian Journal of Zoology. 45 (4): 389–97. doi: 10.1080/11250007809440148 .
  12. ↑ Lenoir, L (2003). "Response of the Foraging Behaviour of Red Wood Ants (Formica Rufa Group) to Exclusion from Trees". Agricultural and Forest Entomology. 5 (3): 183–89. doi:10.1046/j.1461-9563.2003.00176.x. S2CID   84128945.
  13. 1 2 3 Skinner, G. J.; Whittaker, J. B. (1981). "An Experimental Investigation of Inter-Relationships Between the Wood-Ant (Formica Rufa) and Some Tree-Canopy Herbivores". Journal of Animal Ecology. 50 (1): 313–26. Bibcode:1981JAnEc..50..313S. doi:10.2307/4047. JSTOR   4047.
  14. ↑ Elton, Charles (1932). "Territory Among Wood Ants (Formica rufa L.) at Picket Hill". Journal of Animal Ecology. 1 (1): 69–76. Bibcode:1932JAnEc...1...69E. doi:10.2307/996. JSTOR   996.
  15. ↑ Sorvari, Jouni; Eeva, Tapio (2010). "Pollution Diminishes Intra-specific Aggressiveness between Wood Ant Colonies". Science of the Total Environment. 408 (16): 3189–192. Bibcode:2010ScTEn.408.3189S. doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2010.04.008. PMID   20434195.
  16. ↑ Bernasconi, Christian; Maeder, Arnaud; Cherix, Daniel; Pamilo, Pekka. "Diversity and Genetic Structure of the Wood Ant Formica Lugubris in Unmanaged Forests". Ann. Zool. Fennici: 189–99.
  17. ↑ Goropashnaya, Anna V.; Fedorov, Vadim B.; Pamilo, Pekka (2004). "Recent Speciation in the Formica Rufa Group Ants (Hymenoptera, Formicidae): Inference from Mitochondrial DNA Phylogeny". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 32 (1): 198–206. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2003.11.016. PMID   15186807.
  18. ↑ Maeder, Arnaud; Freitag, Anne; Cherix, Daniel (2005). "Species- and Nestmate Brood Discrimination in the Sibling Wood Ant Species Formica Paralugubris and Formica Lugubris". Ann. Zool. Fennici. 42: 201–12.
  19. ↑ Gyllenstrand, N.; Seppa, P.; Pamilo, P. (2004). "Genetic Differentiation in Sympatric Wood Ants, Formica rufa and F. polyctena". Insectes Sociaux. 51 (2): 139–45. doi:10.1007/s00040-003-0720-2. S2CID   25861136.
  20. ↑ Mabelis, A.A. (1978). "Nest Splitting By the Red Wood Ant (Formica polyctena Foerster)". Netherlands Journal of Zoology. 29 (1): 109–25. doi:10.1163/002829679X00124.
  21. ↑ Klimetzek, D (1981). "Population Studies on Hill Building Wood-ants of the Formica rufa -group". Oecologia. 48 (3): 418–21. Bibcode:1981Oecol..48..418K. doi:10.1007/BF00346504. PMID   28309762. S2CID   19986018.
  22. ↑ Celle, Olivier; Blanchard, Philippe; Olivier, Violaine; Schurr, Frank; Cougoule, Nicolas; Faucon, Jean-Paul; Ribière, Magali (2008). "Detection of Chronic bee paralysis virus (CBPV) genome and its replicative RNA form in various hosts and possible ways of spread" (PDF). Virus Research . 133 (2): 280–284. doi:10.1016/j.virusres.2007.12.011. PMID   18243390. S2CID   16801385.
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