DOCSLIB.ORG

HOUSE-INFESTING ANTS of the EASTERN UNITED STATES

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
HOUSE-INFESTING ANTS of the EASTERN UNITED STATES HOUSE-INFESTING ANTS of the EASTERN UNITED STATES Tlwir RacopttiiNi, Biology, »ni Ecomiiilc Importaiieo ft. vm. «F MimiiK^ iTWWL »SE'CUITUMI IffiMi JÜL 121965 CUIEHTSEIULIËGIHI^ Technkai BuMfliii No, 1328 ^rieidtunl^MwrA Swvice UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF A6RIC0LT«RE ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The author grateñilly acknowledges tihe assistiuice of individuals listed below on one or more aspects of ants discussed in this bulletin : Allen Mclntosh (now retired), and J. A. Fluno, U.S. Department of A^culture, Beltsville, Md.; Ö. T. Vanderford, Georgia State Board of Entomology. Atlanta; J. C. Mo^r, ^uthem Forest Experiment Station, tT.S. Department of Agriculture, Alexandria, La. ; Arnold Van Pelt, formerly with Tusculum College, Greeneville, Tenn.; Mar^ Talbot, Lindenwood College, St. Charles, Mo.; M. S. Blum, ïxxuisiana State University, Baton Bouge; and M. H. Bartel, Kansas State Universitv, Manhattan. He is indebted for the illu^ra- tions to Arthur D. Cushman and the now deceased Sarah H. DeBord. Some of the illustrations have hee^ used previously (Smith, 1947, 1950). Ck>yer mustration : Worker of black carpenter ant Camponotui pennsylvanUmn (DeGeer). HOUSE-INFESTING ANTS of THE EASTERN UNITED STATES Their Recognition, Biology, and Economic Importance By Marion R. Smith Entomoiogy Researcli Division Teclinical Buiietin No. 1326 Agricuiturai Researcit Service UNITED STATES DEPARTIRENT OF AGRICULTURE Washington, D.C. Issued May 1965 For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Oovemment Printing Office Washington, D.C., 20402 - Price 46 cents Contents page Introduction }■ Classification and Bionomics ^ Economic Importance 4 Collecting, Shipping, and Identifying Ants 7 Key to Subfamilies of Formicidae 9 Keys to Species J^ Discussion of the Species. |7 Labidus coecus (Latreille) 17 Neivamyrmex nigrescens (Cresson) 18 Neivamyrmex opacithorax (Emery) 19 Aphaenogaster lamellidens Mayr 20 Aphaenogaster ruáis (Emery) 21 Aphaenogaster tennesseensis (Mayr) ^^ Aphaenogaster fulva Roger ^| Pheidole bicarinata vinelandica Forel ^^ Pheidole floridana Emery 26 Pheidole dentata Mayr ^ Crematogaster ashmeadi Mayr ^o Crematogaster cerasi (Fitch) ^ Orematogaster clara Mayr ^1 Crematogaster lineolata (Say) ^^ Monomorium minimum (Buckley) ^ Monomorium pharaonis (Linnaeus) ^^ Monomorium floricola (Jerdon) ^6 Monomorium destructor (Jerdon) ^ Solenopsis xyloni McCook _ _ ^ Solenopsis geminaia (Fabricius) ^V Solenopsis saevissima richteri Forel ^1 Solenopsis molesta (Say) j^ Tetramorium caespitum (Linnaeus) ^ Tetramorium guiñéense (Fabricius) ^o Wasmannia auropunctata (Roger) ^ Atta texana (Buckley) ^" Iridomyrmex humilis (Mayr) — ^ Iridomyrmex pruinosus (Roger) ^ Dorymyrmex pyramicus (Roger) ^¡^ Tapinoma sessile (Say) ^^ Tapinoma melanocephalum (Fabricius) ^ Camponotus castaneus (Latreille) ^ Camponotus tortuganus Emery ^^ Camponotus pennsylvanicus (DeGeer) ^ Camponotus ferrugineus (Fabricius) rr--- «o Camponotus abdominalis floridanus (Buckley) oy Camponotus caryae discolor (Buckley) ¡}^ Camponotus nearcticus Emery ^^ Camponotus rasilis Wheeler— 'J^ Paratrechina longicornis (Latreille) *J^ Paratrechina (Nylanderia) spp ¡^ Prenolepis imparis (Say) ^g Lasius alienus (Foerster) ^^ Lasius neoniger Emery ^. Lasius umbratus (Nylander) ^ Acanthomyops claviger (Roger) |^ Acanthomyops interjectus (Mayr) °° Acanthomyops murphyi (Forel) °^ Acanthomyops latipes (Walsh) ^^ Glossary og Bibliography n HOUSE-INFESTING ANTS OF THE EASTERN UNITED STATES: Their Recognition, Bioiogy, and Economic Importance By Marion R. Smith,* entomologist, Entomology Research Division^ Agricultural Research Service INTRODUCTION Each year numerous requests for information on the identification and control of house-infesting ants are received by various Federal and State agencies, colleges and universities, boaras of health, and pest-control operators. Individuals in these organizations who handle such requests find themselves greatly handicapped because of the lack of comprehensive literature dealing with common house-infesting ants. Often they are unable to identify the ants either to genus or species. This bulletin has been prepared to take care of some of the needs of technical and semitechnical workers. However, no attempt has been made to cover the highly specialized field of ant control. Originally, I had hoped to include all house-infesting ants of the United States. Because of the lack of knowledge of these ants in several regions, espe- cially western North America, it was thought best to include only ants of the eastern United States. However, many of the ants discussed occur also in the Western States. In this bulletin I have furnished keys to species, based on workers of all the well-known, house-infesting ants of the eastern United States. Each species is fully describe and figured, and its biology and economic importance discussed. I have also given the available common names oi the species (including those approved by the Ento- mological Society of America) ; stated whether the ant was intro- duced, and if so, its probable original home ; outlined its range of dis- tribution, especially in the United States; and indicated wh^her it has been confused with other species. Technical terms are given in a glossary. Important references are listed under each species and also in the bibliography. Because the biology of only a very few ants has been intensively studied, much of the information given is based on miscellaneous observations. Although the bulletin deals primarily with ants as house pests, every way in which a species is known to be inimical to man is also mentioned. When ants infest a house, they may be represented by workers, females, or males, or any possible combination of these castes. Since the worker is the most common, troublesome, and best known, this bulletin deals with it only. Smith (1943) presents a means of identifying males to genus, and Creiçhton (1950), of females and workers to species. However, the identification of males and females to species is a difficult task and is not generally recommended. 1 Retired. 2 TECHNICAL BULLETIN 132 6, U.S. DEPT. OF AGRICULTURE Classification and Bionomics Ants belong to the order Hymenoptera, which also includes the wasps and bees. The ants comprise the family Formicidae, and are distinguished from their nearest relatives by two important charac- ters : One of these is the differentiation of the abdomen into two well- marked regions—a slender, one- or two-segmented, freely moving ped- icel, and a larger, more compact terminal portion, the gaster ; the other separating character is the elbowed antenna, in which the first seg- ment, or scape, is greatly elongated in both the female and the worker. In the male, the antenna frequently does not appear to be elbowed, since the scape is not always noticeably lengthened. Ants can be distinguished from termites, with which they are com- monly confused, by the strong constriction or "waist" between the thorax and the abdomen, and the two pairs of wings of which the an- terior pair is much larger than the posterior pair, both having few veins. Termites, on the other hand, have two pairs of wings, approxi- mately equal in size with numerous veins. TTiey have a tendency to lose their wings more readily than the ants. Termites also differ from the winged ants in that the abdomen is broadly joined to the thorax. There are normally three distinct castes of ants : Workers, females, and males. The male is generally winged, and retains its wings until death. Its size is usually intermediate between that of the worker and the female, and the male is characterized by its protruding genital appendages, the presence of ocelli, poorly developed or vestigial man- dibles, and extraordinarily large eyes, which are out of proportion to the remainder of the head. Apparently, the sole function of the male is to mate with the unfertilized female ; when mating has been accom- plished, the male perishes. Mating may take place in the nest, on the ground, or in the air. Males are produced in old or very large colonies only, where there is an abundance of food, since much nourishment is required to bring males to maturity. After attaining maturity, the male usually does not remain long in the parental nest. After leav- ing it, he may even succumb to predators and the elements without having mated. The female, generally the largest of the three castes, normally pos- sesses wings but loses them after mating. She usually possesses three ocelli in addition to the pair of large compound eyes, a large thorax to accommodate the two pairs of wmgs, and a large abdomen for the production of numerous eggs. The primary function of the female or queen is reproduction, but in many of the more highly specialized ants, the queen also cares for and feeds the first bro(KÍ of workers on her salivary secretions. She may live for many years ; upon her death she is commonly replaced by a daughter queen. However, ants may have one or more queens, according to the species. The worker, which is also a female, is never winged except as a rare abnormality. The workers of most species lack ocelli. The thorax is simple, apparently composed of three segments, but in reality there are four. Workers are not always of the same size or morphological structure in a given species. When workers are of approximately the same size and structure within a species, we say the species is HOUSE-INFESTING ANTS OF THE EASTERN UNITED OTATES 3 monomorphic (one form) (example: the Argentine ant//»¿¿ömyTmöic humilis (Mayr) ). When workers within
Load more

Recommended publications
  • ON (19) 633-647.Pdf
    ORNITOLOGIA NEOTROPICAL EDITOR RAYMOND McNEIL INDEX TO VOLUME 19, 2008 (Authors, key words, families, latin names) An International Journal of Neotropical Ornithology published by THE NEOTROPICAL ORNITHOLOGICAL SOCIETY INDEX, VOL. 19, 2008 The “S” prefix before page numbers refers to pages in the Proceedings of the VIIIth Neotropi- cal Ornithological Congress held in Venezuela, 13–19 May 2007, and published as a supplement to Volume 19 (2008) of Ornitología Neotropical. Abaco National Park, S165–S171 335–344, 403–416, 451–456, 457–461, Abreu, M., S461–S472 467–471, 495–515, 581–585 Abundance, 345–359, S287–S293, S295– Androgen receptors, S229–S239 S303, S433–S443, S491–S500 Angulo Pratolongo, F., S279–S286 Accipiter erythronemius, 15–29 Animal communication, 175–199 Acute stress responses, S241–S251 Antagonism, S485–S490 Adaptations, S511–S519 Antioquia, 467–471, 495–515 Addis, E., S241–S251 Antshrike, 293–297 Adrenocortical responses, S241–S251 Ara, S173–S181 Advances, S329–S337, S339–S346 Ara ararauna, 321–328, S113–S122 Aggressive interactions, 329–334 Ara chloropterus, 321–328 Agile Tit-Tyrant, 117–122 Ara macao, 321–328 Agroecosystems, S575–S585 Ara militaris, 255–263 Agroforestry, 15–29 Araucaria angustifolia, 15–29 Aguaruna indigenous communities, S587– Arbeláez, D., S567–S574 S594 Arbeláez-Alvarado, D., S549–S565 Aguaruna-Jívaro communities, S587–S594 Ardea cocoi, 485–493 Águila Poma, 611–616 Ardiles, K., 485–493 Aimophila sumichrasti, 123–127 Areta, J. I., 201–211 Alarcón-Nieto, G., 371–376 Argentina, 15–29, 31–41, 71–80, 109–116, Albrieu, C., S311–S319, S433–S443 161–174, 201–211, 299–303, 315–319, Alducin-Chávez, G.
    [Show full text]
  • Effects on Brood Development in the Carpenter Ant Camponotus Vicinus Mayr After Exposure to the Yeast Associate Schwanniomyces Polymorphus Kloecker
    insects Article Effects on Brood Development in the Carpenter Ant Camponotus vicinus Mayr after Exposure to the Yeast Associate Schwanniomyces polymorphus Kloecker Mark E. Mankowski 1,*, Jeffrey J. Morrell 2 and Patricia K. Lebow 3 1 Forest Products Laboratory Starkville, USDA Forest Service, Starkville, MS 39759, USA 2 Centre Timber Durability and Design Life, University of the Sunshine Coast, Sippy Downs, QLD 4102, Australia; [email protected] 3 Forest Products Laboratory Madison, USDA Forest Service, Madison, WI 53726, USA; [email protected] * Correspondence: [email protected] Simple Summary: Carpenter ants are important to ecosystem services as they assist in the breakdown of course woody debris when excavating wood for nests. Feeding on a variety of carbohydrate and protein sources, they have an infrabuccal filter that limits passage of large food particles to their gut. A variety of yeasts have been found associated with the infrabuccal pocket and the nests of these ants. The yeast Schwanniomyces polymorphus is associated with the carpenter ant Camponotus vicinus. To examine a possible nutritional association between this yeast and ant, we reared small sub-colonies of defaunated and non-defaunated C. vincus brood on several artificial diets where various nutritional components were removed. Part of the testing involved exposure of brood to these diets and cells of S. polymorphus. Dietary treatments that were augmented with yeast generally had deleterious Citation: Mankowski, M.E.; Morrell, J.J.; effects on brood development compared to diets without yeast. However, increased brood weight Lebow, P.K. Effects on Brood and increased number of adult ants from initial brood was observed in non-defaunated ants fed a Development in the Carpenter Ant diet where B vitamins and sterols were absent, but augmented with live yeast.
    [Show full text]
  • Effects of House and Landscape Characteristics on the Abundance and Diversity of Perimeter Pests Principal Investigators: Arthur G
    Project Final Report presented to: The Pest Management Foundation Board of Trustees Project Title: Effects of house and landscape characteristics on the abundance and diversity of perimeter pests Principal Investigators: Arthur G. Appel and Xing Ping Hu, Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology, Auburn University Date: June 17, 2019 Executive Summary: The overall goal of this project was to expand and refine our statistical model that estimates Smokybrown cockroach abundance from house and landscape characteristics to include additional species of cockroaches, several species of ants as well as subterranean termites. The model will correlate pest abundance and diversity with house and landscape characteristics. These results could ultimately be used to better treat and prevent perimeter pest infestations. Since the beginning of the period of performance (August 1, 2017), we have hired two new Master’s students, Patrick Thompson and Gökhan Benk, to assist with the project. Both students will obtain degrees in entomology with a specialization in urban entomology with anticipated graduation dates of summer-fall 2019. We have developed and tested several traps designs for rapidly collecting sweet and protein feeding ants, purchased and modified traps for use during a year of trapping, and have identified species of ants, cockroaches, and termites found around homes in Auburn Alabama. House and landscape characteristics have been measured at 62 single-family homes or independent duplexes. These homes range in age from 7 to 61 years and include the most common different types of siding (brick, metal, stone, vinyl, wood), different numbers/types of yard objects (none to >15, including outbuildings, retaining walls, large ornamental rocks, old trees, compost piles, etc.), and different colors.
    [Show full text]
  • Ants Inhabiting Oak Cynipid Galls in Hungary
    North-Western Journal of Zoology 2020, vol.16 (1) - Correspondence: Notes 95 Ants inhabiting oak Cynipid galls in Hungary Oaks are known to harbour extremely rich insect communi- ties, among them more than 100 species of gall wasps (Hy- menoptera: Cynipidae) in Europe (Csóka et al. 2005, Melika 2006). Some gall wasp species are able to induce large and structurally complex galls that can sometimes be abundant on oaks, providing attractive shelters for several arthropod taxa including ant species. Ants are among the most important players in many ecosystems and they are also considered to act as ecosystem engineers (Folgarait, 1998). They are also famous for having ecological or physical interactions with a great variety of other organisms, such as gall wasps. Ants are known to tend Figure 1. Inner structure of the asexual Andricus quercustozae gall in- aphid colonies on the developing galls and, as general pred- habited by ants. ators, they prey on arthropods approaching the protected aphid colonies. Some oak cynipid galls secrete honeydew on their surface. This sweet substrate attracts ants and, in re- turn, the ants protect the galls from predators and parasi- toids (Abe, 1988, 1992; Inouye & Agrawal 2004; Nicholls, 2017). Beyond this obvious ecological interaction between gall wasps and ants, this association continues after the gall wasp’s life cycle has ceased. Certain galls are known to serve as either temporary or permanent shelter for many ant species. Some galls (e.g. An- dricus hungaricus (Hartig), Andricus quercustozae (Bosc), Aphelonyx cerricola (Giraud)) are large enough even for re- productive ant colonies. The advantages of galls as nesting logs are multifaceted.
    [Show full text]
  • Predicting Future Coexistence in a North American Ant Community Sharon Bewick1,2, Katharine L
    Predicting future coexistence in a North American ant community Sharon Bewick1,2, Katharine L. Stuble1, Jean-Phillipe Lessard3,4, Robert R. Dunn5, Frederick R. Adler6,7 & Nathan J. Sanders1,3 1Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Tennessee 2National Institute for Mathematical and Biological Synthesis, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Tennessee 3Center for Macroecology, Evolution and Climate, Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark 4Quebec Centre for Biodiversity Science, Department of Biology, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada 5Department of Biological Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina 6Department of Mathematics, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah 7Department of Biology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah Keywords Abstract Ant communities, climate change, differential equations, mechanistic models, species Global climate change will remodel ecological communities worldwide. How- interactions. ever, as a consequence of biotic interactions, communities may respond to cli- mate change in idiosyncratic ways. This makes predictive models that Correspondence incorporate biotic interactions necessary. We show how such models can be Sharon Bewick, Department of Biology, constructed based on empirical studies in combination with predictions or University of Maryland, College Park, MD assumptions regarding the abiotic consequences of climate change. Specifically, 20742, USA. Tel: 724-833-4459; we consider a well-studied ant community in North America. First, we use his- Fax: 301-314-9358; E-mail: [email protected] torical data to parameterize a basic model for species coexistence. Using this model, we determine the importance of various factors, including thermal Funding Information niches, food discovery rates, and food removal rates, to historical species coexis- RRD and NJS were supported by DOE-PER tence.
    [Show full text]
  • The Ants of Oklahoma Master of Science
    THE ANTS OF OKLAHOMA By Jerry H. Young(I\" Bachelor of Science Oklahoma Agricultural and Mechanical College Stillwater, Oklahoma 1955 Submitted to the faculty of the Graduate School of the Oklahoma Agricultural and Mechanical College in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF SCIENCE January 1 1956 tl<lAWMA AGCMCl«.f�Al L �Ci'!AlttCAl e&U.Ull LIBRARY JUL16195 6 THE ANTS OF OKLAHOMA Thesis Approved: Thesis Adviser }>JcMem��f � 't'" he Thesis ) Committee Member of the Thesis Committee 7'4'.��Member of the Thesis Committee Head of the Department ifean of the Graduate School 361565 ii PREFACE The study of the distribution of ants in the United States has been a long and continuous process with many contributors, but the State of Oklahoma has not received the attentions of these observers to any great extent. The only known list of ants of Oklahoma is one prepared by Mo Ro Smith (1935)0 Early in 1954 a survey of the state of Oklahoma was made to determine the species present and their distributiono The results of this survey, which blanketed the entire State, are given in this paper. The author wishes to express his appreciation to Dro Do E. Howell, chairman of the writer's thesis committee, for his valuable assistance and careful guidance in the preparation of this papero Also, much guidance on preparation of this manuscrip_t was received from Drs. Do Eo Bryan, William H. Irwin and F. A. Fenton. Many of the determin­ ations were made by M. R. Smith.. Vital infonnation was obtained from the museums at Oklahoma Agricultural and Mechanical College and the University of Oklahoma.
    [Show full text]
  • Nutritional Ecology of the Carpenter Ant Camponotus Pennsylvanicus (De Geer): Macronutrient Preference and Particle Consumption
    Nutritional Ecology of the Carpenter Ant Camponotus pennsylvanicus (De Geer): Macronutrient Preference and Particle Consumption Colleen A. Cannon Dissertation submitted to the Faculty of the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Entomology Richard D. Fell, Chairman Jeffrey R. Bloomquist Richard E. Keyel Charles Kugler Donald E. Mullins June 12, 1998 Blacksburg, Virginia Keywords: diet, feeding behavior, food, foraging, Formicidae Copyright 1998, Colleen A. Cannon Nutritional Ecology of the Carpenter Ant Camponotus pennsylvanicus (De Geer): Macronutrient Preference and Particle Consumption Colleen A. Cannon (ABSTRACT) The nutritional ecology of the black carpenter ant, Camponotus pennsylvanicus (De Geer) was investigated by examining macronutrient preference and particle consumption in foraging workers. The crops of foragers collected in the field were analyzed for macronutrient content at two-week intervals through the active season. Choice tests were conducted at similar intervals during the active season to determine preference within and between macronutrient groups. Isolated individuals and small social groups were fed fluorescent microspheres in the laboratory to establish the fate of particles ingested by workers of both castes. Under natural conditions, foragers chiefly collected carbohydrate and nitrogenous material. Carbohydrate predominated in the crop and consisted largely of simple sugars. A small amount of glycogen was present. Carbohydrate levels did not vary with time. Lipid levels in the crop were quite low. The level of nitrogen compounds in the crop was approximately half that of carbohydrate, and exhibited seasonal dependence. Peaks in nitrogen foraging occurred in June and September, months associated with the completion of brood rearing in Camponotus.
    [Show full text]
  • Digging Deeper Into the Ecology of Subterranean Ants: Diversity and Niche Partitioning Across Two Continents
    diversity Article Digging Deeper into the Ecology of Subterranean Ants: Diversity and Niche Partitioning across Two Continents Mickal Houadria * and Florian Menzel Institute of Organismic and Molecular Evolution, Johannes-Gutenberg-University Mainz, Hanns-Dieter-Hüsch-Weg 15, 55128 Mainz, Germany; [email protected] * Correspondence: [email protected] Abstract: Soil fauna is generally understudied compared to above-ground arthropods, and ants are no exception. Here, we compared a primary and a secondary forest each on two continents using four different sampling methods. Winkler sampling, pitfalls, and four types of above- and below-ground baits (dead, crushed insects; melezitose; living termites; living mealworms/grasshoppers) were applied on four plots (4 × 4 grid points) on each site. Although less diverse than Winkler samples and pitfalls, subterranean baits provided a remarkable ant community. Our baiting system provided a large dataset to systematically quantify strata and dietary specialisation in tropical rainforest ants. Compared to above-ground baits, 10–28% of the species at subterranean baits were overall more common (or unique to) below ground, indicating a fauna that was truly specialised to this stratum. Species turnover was particularly high in the primary forests, both concerning above-ground and subterranean baits and between grid points within a site. This suggests that secondary forests are more impoverished, especially concerning their subterranean fauna. Although subterranean ants rarely displayed specific preferences for a bait type, they were in general more specialised than above-ground ants; this was true for entire communities, but also for the same species if they foraged in both strata. Citation: Houadria, M.; Menzel, F.
    [Show full text]
  • Seed Ecology and Grassland Resilience: the Case Study of Campo Rupestre
    Université d’Avignon et des Pays de Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais Vaucluse École doctorale 536 Programa de Pós Graduação em «Sciences et Agrosciences» Biologia Vegetal THESIS presented as a requirement for obtaining a doctorate degree from the Federal University of Minas Gerais and the Avignon Université (Cotutella agreeement) SEED ECOLOGY AND GRASSLAND RESILIENCE: THE CASE STUDY OF CAMPO RUPESTRE ANDRÉ JARDIM ARRUDA Estimated date for thesis defense on 30 August 2019 Grégory MAHY Dr., Professor Reporter Gembloux AgroBio Tech, Université de Liège, Belgique Giselda DURIGAN Dr., Researcher Reporter Instituto Florestal do Estado de São Paulo, Brazil Thierry DUTOIT Dr., Researcher Examiner Avignon Université, France Alessandra FIDELIS Dr., Adjunct Professor, H.D.R. Examiner Universidade Estadual Paulista, Brazil Tatiana CORNELISSEN Dr., Adjunct Professor, H.D.R. Examiner Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Brazil Jeronimo SANSEVERO Dr., Adjunct Professor, H.D.R. Examiner Universidade Federal Rural do Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Elise BUISSON Dr., Adjunct Professor, H.D.R. Co-advisor Avignon Université, France Dr., Professor Advisor Fernando SILVEIRA Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Brazil This thesis was prepared at the Institut Méditerranéen de Biodiversité et d'Écologie and at the Laboratory of Ecology and Evolution of Tropical Plant I ANDRÉ JARDIM ARRUDA SEED ECOLOGY AND GRASSLAND RESILIENCE: THE CASE STUDY OF CAMPO RUPESTRE Tese apresentada ao Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biologia Vegetal do Departamento de Botânica do Instituto
    [Show full text]
  • Hymenoptera: Formicidae)
    SYSTEMATICS Phylogenetic Analysis of Aphaenogaster Supports the Resurrection of Novomessor (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) 1 B. B. DEMARCO AND A. I. COGNATO Department of Entomology, Michigan State University, 288 Farm Lane, East Lansing, MI 48824. Ann. Entomol. Soc. Am. 108(2): 201–210 (2015); DOI: 10.1093/aesa/sau013 ABSTRACT The ant genus Aphaenogaster Mayr is an ecologically diverse group that is common throughout much of North America. Aphaenogaster has a complicated taxonomic history due to variabil- ity of taxonomic characters. Novomessor Emery was previously synonymized with Aphaenogaster, which was justified by the partial mesonotal suture observed in Aphaenogaster ensifera Forel. Previous studies using Bayesian phylogenies with molecular data suggest Aphaenogaster is polyphyletic. Convergent evolution and retention of ancestral similarities are two major factors contributing to nonmonophyly of Aphaenogaster. Based on 42 multistate morphological characters and five genes, we found Novomessor more closely related to Veromessor Forel and that this clade is sister to Aphaenogaster. Our results confirm the validity of Novomessor stat. r. as a separate genus, and it is resurrected based on the combi- nation of new DNA, morphological, behavioral, and ecological data. KEY WORDS Aphaenogaster, Novomessor, phylogenetics, resurrection Introduction phylogenetic analyses resolved Aphaenogaster as polyphyletic, including Messor Forel, 1890 and Sten- The ant genus Aphaenogaster Mayr, 1853 is a speciose amma (Brady et al. 2006, Moreau and Bell 2013). group,whichhasnotbeentaxonomicallyreviewedin Ward (2011) suggested that convergent evolution and over 60 years (Creighton 1950). Aphaenogaster con- retention of ancestral similarities were two major fac- tains 227 worldwide species (Bolton 2006), with 23 tors contributing to polyphyly of Aphaenogaster. valid North American species reduced from 31 original Aphaenogaster taxonomy was further complicated species descriptions.
    [Show full text]
  • IS-292 Settlement
    Insectes soc. 44 (1997) 323 – 336 0020-1812/97/040323-14 $ 1.50+0.20/0 © Birkhäuser Verlag, Basel, 1997 Insectes Sociaux Research article Settlement and distribution of colony-founding queens of the arboreal ant, Crematogaster ashmeadi, in a longleaf pine forest D. A. Hahn 1 and W. R. Tschinkel * Department of Biological Science, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL 32306-3050, USA, e-mail: [email protected] 1 Current address: Interdisciplinary Program in Insect Science, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA Key words: Ecology, life history, Formicidae, Picioides borealis, red-cockaded woodpecker. Abstract Crematogaster ashmeadi is the dominant arboreal ant occurring on longleaf pines in the Apalachi- cola National Forest of northern Florida. Newly-mated C. ashmeadi queens preferentially founded colonies in abandoned beetle galleries in the dead branches of longleaf pine saplings. There was a positive association between the frequency of queens in trees, several size-related tree character- istics and the amount of insect boring activity in dead branches. The dispersion of newly-mated queens among trees was clumped, suggesting that these queens selected founding sites according to their suitability for colony founding, and that these favorable characteristics were clumped among saplings. The occurrence of founding nests was not related to the prior presence of other ants on the tree. Survival of incipient colonies during the first year was low (7.6%), and their dispersion was not different from random. One possible explanation for this change in dispersion over the year is aggressive interference competition between incipient colonies, although random mortality cannot be discounted. Overall, the distribution of young C.
    [Show full text]
  • I. Studies of Volatile Compounds from Ants Ii
    I. STUDIES OF VOLATILE COMPOUNDS FROM ANTS II. DEGRADATION STUDIES AND STRUCTURE PROOF OF CIS, CIS~NEPETALACTONE By DONALD JOHN MCGURK :1.J I Bachelor of Science University of Nebraska Lincoln, Nebraska 1962 Submitted to the faculty of the Graduate College of the Oklahoma State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY July~ 1968 OKlAHOMA STATE UNIVERSITY LI BRAF-cY JAN ~O 1969 ,. ,t--•f,. , ; ... • ' , , ........, ...., ~ # ~· . I. STUDIES OF VOLATILE COMPOUNDS FROM ANTS II. DEGRADATION STUDIES AND STRUCTURE PROOF OF CIS, CIS-NEPETALACTONE Thesis Approved: D t2 ~n Dean of the Graduate College 696365 ii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I am deeply grateful for the encouragement and guidance provided by Dro Eo Jo Eisenbraun during the conduct of this investigationo I wish to thank Dr. W. A. Drew, Dr. Jerry Young, Dr. and Mrs. D. E. Bryan and especially Dr. Ken Vick for the collection, identification, and behavioral testing of ants. Appreciation is extended to Dro George Waller for the use of the mass spectrometer, to Dro Earl Mitchell and Mro Keith Kinneberg for their assistance in taking spectra, and to the National Science Founda­ tion which supported these studies through grant NSF GB-32750 I particularly wish to thank Dr. Pat Flanagan who provided the nmr spectra and assisted in their interpretation and Mrs. Jennifer Frost who assisted in the ant studies. Finally, I extend my deepest thanks to the graduate students at Oklahoma State who encouraged me to start to write this dissertation. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter Page PART I, STUDIES.OF VOLATILE COMPOUNDS FROM ANTS I.
    [Show full text]