Proiridomyrmex

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Proiridomyrmex
Temporal range: Eocene, 51–46  Ma
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Proiridomyrmex rotundatus specimen.png
Proiridomyrmex rotundatus
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hymenoptera
Family: Formicidae
Subfamily: Dolichoderinae
Tribe: incertae sedis
Genus: Proiridomyrmex
Dlussky & Rasnitsyn, 2002
Type species
Proiridomyrmex vetulusa
Dlussky & Rasnitsyn, 2003, 1862
Diversity [1]
2 species

Proiridomyrmex is an extinct genus of ants in the subfamily Dolichoderinae. The genus contains two species; Proiridomyrmex vetulus, described in 2002 where its fossils were discovered in the United States, and Proiridomyrmex rotundatus, described in 2015. [2] [3]

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<i>Prionomyrmex</i> Extinct genus of ants

Prionomyrmex is an extinct genus of bulldog ants in the subfamily Myrmeciinae of the family Formicidae. It was first described by Gustav Mayr in 1868, after he collected a holotype worker of P. longiceps in Baltic amber. Three species are currently described, characterised by their long mandibles, slender bodies and large size. These ants are known from the Eocene and Late Oligocene, with fossil specimens only found around Europe. It is suggested that these ants preferred to live in jungles, with one species assumed to be an arboreal nesting species. These ants had a powerful stinger that was used to subdue prey. In 2000, it was suggested by Cesare Baroni Urbani that the living species Nothomyrmecia macrops and a species he described both belonged to Prionomyrmex, but this proposal has not been widely accepted by the entomological community. Instead, scientists still classify the two genera distinctive from each other, making Nothomyrmecia a valid genus.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prionomyrmecini</span> Tribe of ants

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References

  1. Bolton, B. (2014). "†Proiridomyrmex". AntCat. Retrieved 3 July 2014.
  2. Dlussky, G. M.; Rasnitsyn, A. P. 2003 [2002]. Ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) of Formation Green River and some other Middle Eocene deposits of North America. Russ. Entomol. J. 11(4): 411-436 (page 416, fig. 3, described)
  3. Lapolla, John S; Greenwalt, Dale E (2015). "Fossil Ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) of the Middle Eocene Kishenehn Formation" (PDF). Sociobiology. 62 (2). doi: 10.13102/sociobiology.v62i2.163-174 (inactive 1 November 2024).{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: DOI inactive as of November 2024 (link)