Polyrhachis
Polyrhachis Temporal range:
| |
---|---|
Polyrhachis gracilior | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Class: | Insecta |
Order: | Hymenoptera |
Family: | Formicidae |
Subfamily: | Formicinae |
Tribe: | Camponotini |
Genus: | Polyrhachis F. Smith, 1857 |
Type species | |
Formica bihamata | |
Species | |
Diversity[1] | |
477 species | |
Synonyms | |
Cephalomyrma Karavaiev, 1935 |
Polyrhachis is a genus of formicine ants found in the Old World with over 600 species.[2] The genus is yet to be comprehensively resolved and contains many varied species including nest-weavers (e.g. Polyrhachis dives), swimming workers (e.g. Polyrhachis sokolova), soil (e.g. Polyrhachis proxima) and tree-dwellers (e.g. Polyrhachis bicolor). First fossil record of this genus was P. annosa from Miocene.[citation needed]
General morphology
Size: Workers range in size approx 5–10mm in length. Eyes developed, no
Ecology
Polyrhachis species include an array of nesting types ranging from terrestrial, soil based nests to arboreal nests. As a result, the nest architectures also vary with some species displaying a high level of complexity to nest building, utilising larval silk to weave nest materials together. Such nest weaving is more commonly associated (and indeed more complex) in ants of the genus
Polyrhachis do not have a stinger but an acidipore that can spray formic acid. When attacking, this is often sprayed in combination with biting thus making the acid more effective against the subject of the attack. Polyrhachis that do not possess a metapleural gland seem to utilise the antibiotic properties of their formic acid and when it cannot be used, ants are more likely to succumb to parasite infection [4]
Some species are found to be
Other species exhibiting social parasitism include Polyrhachis lama and Polyrhachis loweryi, which intrude other ants colonies of different subfamilies, some permanently living within the host colonies.[5][6][7]
Selected species
- Polyrhachis ammon (NSW)
- Polyrhachis beccari
- Polyrhachis bihamata
- Polyrhachis bugnioni
- Polyrhachis convexa
- Polyrhachis curvispina
- Polyrhachis cyaniventris
- Polyrhachis dives
- Polyrhachis exercita
- Polyrhachis gibbosa
- Polyrhachis gracilior
- Polyrhachis hagiomyrma
- Polyrhachis hippomanes
- Polyrhachis horni
- Polyrhachis illaudata
- Polyrhachis jerdonii
- Polyrhachis lamellidens
- Polyrhachis nigra
- Polyrhachis punctillata
- Polyrhachis rastellata
- Polyrhachis rupicapra
- Polyrhachis scissa
- Polyrhachis semiinermis
- Polyrhachis sokolova
- Polyrhachis sophocles
- Polyrhachis thrinax
- Polyrhachis tibialis
- Polyrhachis xanthippe
- Polyrhachis yerburyi
References
- ^ Bolton, B. (2014). "Polyrhachis". AntCat. Retrieved 17 July 2014.
- ^ "Genus: Polyrhachis". antweb.org. AntWeb. Retrieved 29 September 2013.
- ^ Hung, ACF (1967). "A Revision of the Ant Genus Polyrhachis at the Subgeneric Level (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)". Transactions of the American Entomological Society. 93 (4): 395–422.
- S2CID 23234351.
- .
- S2CID 22494816.
- ^ "Polyrhachis lama, Biology". AntWiki. Retrieved 2022-07-24.
External links
- Media related to Polyrhachis at Wikimedia Commons