| Manica rubida | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Worker of Manica rubida at the nest entrance | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Hymenoptera |
| Family: | Formicidae |
| Subfamily: | Myrmicinae |
| Genus: | Manica |
| Species: | M. rubida |
| Binomial name | |
| Manica rubida (Latreille, 1802) | |
| Synonyms | |
| |
Manica rubida is a species of ant in the subfamily Myrmicinae. [2]
This species is present in Central and Southern Europe, in the Near East and in Georgia. [3] [4] [5]
These ants prefer sunny mountain areas with poor vegetation, but can also be found in montane forests, at an elevation of 400–2,200 metres (1,300–7,200 ft) above sea level. [3] [4]
Manica rubida can reach a length of 5–9 millimetres (0.20–0.35 in) in workers, of 9.5–13 millimetres (0.37–0.51 in) in queens, of 8–10 millimetres (0.31–0.39 in) in males. [4] Workers are reddish brown, slender, usually with a darker head. Thorax and abdomen are very shiny and the abdomen is darker at the rear end. Queens are similar to workers, usually they have a slightly darker color than the worker, but often they are totally dark. Males are black and glossy. Queens and workers have a venomous sting and their stings are very painful, but not dangerous. [4]
These ants feed on insects and honeydew. They are a little aggressive, but they defend only their immediate nesting area. Usually they build their nests under stones, but nests can also occur in the soil. These nests often can reach up to 3 meters depth. Around the large opening of their nests they may deposit sand and earth to form a wide flat crater. Colonies are often polygynous and can reach the size of several hundred workers. Swarming occurs from late May to the early September. Hibernation occurs from October to March. [4]
Ants are eusocial insects of the family Formicidae and, along with the related wasps and bees, belong to the order Hymenoptera. Ants evolved from vespoid wasp ancestors in the Cretaceous period. More than 13,800 of an estimated total of 22,000 species have been classified. They are easily identified by their geniculate (elbowed) antennae and the distinctive node-like structure that forms their slender waists.
The red imported fire ant, also known as the fire ant or RIFA, is a species of ant native to South America. A member of the genus Solenopsis in the subfamily Myrmicinae, it was described by Swiss entomologist Felix Santschi as a variant of S. saevissima in 1916. Its current specific name invicta was given to the ant in 1972 as a separate species. However, the variant and species were the same ant, and the name was preserved due to its wide use. Though South American in origin, the red imported fire ant has been accidentally introduced in Australia, New Zealand, several Asian and Caribbean countries, Europe and the United States. The red imported fire ant is polymorphic, as workers appear in different shapes and sizes. The ant's colours are red and somewhat yellowish with a brown or black gaster, but males are completely black. Red imported fire ants are dominant in altered areas and live in a wide variety of habitats. They can be found in rain forests, disturbed areas, deserts, grasslands, alongside roads and buildings, and in electrical equipment. Colonies form large mounds constructed from soil with no visible entrances because foraging tunnels are built and workers emerge far away from the nest.
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.
Myrmecia is a genus of ants first established by Danish zoologist Johan Christian Fabricius in 1804. The genus is a member of the subfamily Myrmeciinae of the family Formicidae. Myrmecia is a large genus of ants, comprising at least 93 species that are found throughout Australia and its coastal islands, while a single species is only known from New Caledonia. One species has been introduced out of its natural distribution and was found in New Zealand in 1940, but the ant was last seen in 1981. These ants are commonly known as bull ants, bulldog ants or jack jumper ants, and are also associated with many other common names. They are characterized by their extreme aggressiveness, ferocity, and painful stings. Some species are known for the jumping behavior they exhibit when agitated.
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.
Harpegnathos saltator, sometimes called the Indian jumping ant or Jerdon's jumping ant, is a species of ant found in India. They have long mandibles and have the ability to leap a few inches. They are large-eyed and active predators that hunt mainly in the early morning. The colonies are small and the difference between workers and queens is very slight.
Nothomyrmecia, also known as the dinosaur ant or dawn ant, is an extremely rare genus of ants consisting of a single species, Nothomyrmecia macrops. These ants live in South Australia, nesting in old-growth mallee woodland and Eucalyptus woodland. The full distribution of Nothomyrmecia has never been assessed, and it is unknown how widespread the species truly is; its potential range may be wider if it does favour old-growth mallee woodland. Possible threats to its survival include habitat destruction and climate change. Nothomyrmecia is most active when it is cold because workers encounter fewer competitors and predators such as Camponotus and Iridomyrmex, and it also increases hunting success. Thus, the increase of temperature may prevent them from foraging and very few areas would be suitable for the ant to live in. As a result, the IUCN lists the ant as Critically Endangered.
The black carpenter ant is one of the largest and most common species of carpenter ant native to the central and eastern United States as well as eastern Canada.
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.
Bombus lucorum, the white-tailed bumblebee, is a species of bumblebee, widespread and common throughout Europe. This name has been widely used for a range of nearly identical-looking or cryptic species of bumblebees. In 1983, Scholl and Obrecht even coined the term Bombus lucorum complex to explain the three taxa that cannot be easily differentiated from one another by their appearances. A recent review of all of these species worldwide has helped to clarify its distribution in Europe and northern Asia, almost to the Pacific. B. lucorum reaches the Barents Sea in the North. However, in southern Europe, although found in Greece it is an upland species with its distribution never quite reaching the Mediterranean.
The green-head ant, also known as the green ant or metallic pony ant, is a species of ant that is endemic to Australia. It was described by British entomologist Frederick Smith in 1858 as a member of the genus Rhytidoponera in the subfamily Ectatomminae. These ants measure between 5 and 7 mm. The queens and workers look similar, differing only in size, with the males being the smallest. They are well known for their distinctive metallic appearance, which varies from green to purple or even reddish-violet. Among the most widespread of all insects in Australia, green-head ants are found in almost every Australian state, but are absent in Tasmania. They have also been introduced in New Zealand, where several populations have been established.
Trail pheromones are semiochemicals secreted from the body of an individual to affect the behavior of another individual receiving it. Trail pheromones often serve as a multi purpose chemical secretion that leads members of its own species towards a food source, while representing a territorial mark in the form of an allomone to organisms outside of their species. Specifically, trail pheromones are often incorporated with secretions of more than one exocrine gland to produce a higher degree of specificity. Considered one of the primary chemical signaling methods in which many social insects depend on, trail pheromone deposition can be considered one of the main facets to explain the success of social insect communication today. Many species of ants, including those in the genus Crematogaster use trail pheromones.
Avitomyrmex is an extinct genus of bulldog ants in the subfamily Myrmeciinae which contains three described species. The genus was described in 2006 from Ypresian stage deposits of British Columbia, Canada. Almost all the specimens collected are queens, with an exception of a single fossilised worker. These ants are large, and the eyes are also large and well-developed; a sting is present in one species. The behaviour of these ants may have been similar to extant Myrmeciinae ants, such as foraging solitarily for arthropod prey and never leaving pheromone trails to food sources. Avitomyrmex has not been assigned to any tribe, instead generally being regarded as incertae sedis within Myrmeciinae. However, its identity as an ant has been challenged, although it is undoubtedly a hymenopteran insect.
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.
Formica cinerea is a species of ant in the family Formicidae.
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.
Myrmecia regularis is a species of ant endemic to Australia. A member of the genus Myrmecia in the subfamily Myrmeciinae, it was first described by American entomologist Walter Cecil Crawley in 1925. These ants are medium to large in size, measuring 10 to 20 millimetres, and they are bright brownish-red in colour. Queens and workers share similar morphological features, but they can be distinguished by the noticeable size difference. Males also look similar, but collected specimens are too damaged to be examined properly.
Polybia sericea is a social, tropical wasp of the family Vespidae that can be found in South America. It founds its colonies by swarming migrations, and feeds on nectar and arthropods.
Synoeca septentrionalis is one of five species of wasps in the genus Synoeca. It is a swarm-founding wasp that is also eusocial, exhibiting complicated nest structure and defense mechanisms and a colony cycle including a pre-emergence phase and a post-emergence phase. It is typically found in areas from Central to South America. This wasp is one of the larger species of paper wasps and exhibits multiple morphological adaptations as a result of this. Synoeca septentrionalis is known for possessing a very painful sting.
Many species of Staphylinidae have developed complex interspecies relationships with ants, known as myrmecophily. Rove beetles are among the most rich and diverse families of myrmecophilous beetles, with a wide variety of relationships with ants. Ant associations range from near free-living species which prey only on ants, to obligate inquilines of ants, which exhibit extreme morphological and chemical adaptations to the harsh environments of ant nests. Some species are fully integrated into the host colony, and are cleaned and fed by ants. Many of these, including species in tribe Clavigerini, are myrmecophagous, placating their hosts with glandular secretions while eating the brood.
Media related to Manica rubida at Wikimedia Commons