Mycocepurus curvispinosus

Mycocepurus curvispinosus
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Hymenoptera
Family:	Formicidae
Subfamily:	Myrmicinae
Tribe:	Attini
Genus:	Mycocepurus
Species:	M. curvispinosus
Binomial name
	Mycocepurus curvispinosus; Mackay, W.P., 1998

Most specimens have been collected in pitfall traps, or litter samples. This species apparently lives in nests of Mycocepurus smithii in México (La Mancha, Veracruz). The workers are slow and timid and forage together with those of M. smithii. A single, dealate female was collected in Panamá on 18-v-1995. (Mackay et al. 2004)

Identification

The worker of this species is easily recognized, as it lacks anterior pronotal spines. Additionally, the propodeal spines are strongly curved upwards. No other species in the genus has this combination of characters. The female can be recognized by the large lateral pronotal spines, and the slightly upturned propodeal teeth. It is relatively small (total length slightly more than 2.5 mm), smaller than the females of Mycocepurus smithii. The first two characteristics easily separate this species from M. smithii. (Mackay et al. 2004)

Distribution

Latitudinal Distribution Pattern

Latitudinal Range: 19.6083° to 6.684167°.


North Temperate	North Subtropical	Tropical	South Subtropical	South Temperate

Source: AntMaps

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists

Neotropical Region: Costa Rica (type locality), Mexico, Panama.

Distribution based on AntMaps

Distribution based on AntWeb specimens

Check data from AntWeb

Countries Occupied

Number of countries occupied by this species based on AntWiki Regional Taxon Lists. In general, fewer countries occupied indicates a narrower range, while more countries indicates a more widespread species.

Estimated Abundance

Relative abundance based on number of AntMaps records per species (this species within the purple bar). Fewer records (to the left) indicates a less abundant/encountered species while more records (to the right) indicates more abundant/encountered species.

Habitat

Found in a variety of communities, ranging from slashed and burned areas, sub-deciduous forests to tropical rain forests.

Biology

Explore Fungus Growing

For additional details see Fungus growing ants.

A handful of ant species (approx. 275 out of the known 15,000 species) have developed the ability to cultivate fungus within their nests. In most species the fungus is used as the sole food source for the larvae and is an important resource for the adults as well. Additionally, in a limited number of cases, the fungus is used to construct part of the nest structure but is not as a food source.

These fungus-feeding species are limited to North and South America, extending from the pine barrens of New Jersey, United States, in the north (Trachymyrmex septentrionalis) to the cold deserts in Argentina in the south (several species of Acromyrmex). Species that use fungi in nest construction are known from Europe and Africa (a few species in the genera Crematogaster, Lasius).

The details of fungal cultivation are rich and complex. First, a wide variety of materials are used as substrate for fungus cultivating. The so-called lower genera include species that prefer dead vegetation, seeds, flowers, fruits, insect corpses, and feces, which are collected in the vicinity of their nests. The higher genera include non leaf-cutting species that collect mostly fallen leaflets, fruit, and flowers, as well as the leafcutters that collect fresh leaves from shrubs and trees. Second, while the majority of fungi that are farmed by fungus-feeding ants belong to the family Lepiotaceae, mostly the genera Leucoagaricus and Leucocoprinus, other fungi are also involved. Some species utilise fungi in the family Tricholomataceae while a few others cultivate yeast. The fungi used by the higher genera no longer produce spores. Their fungi produce nutritious and swollen hyphal tips (gongylidia) that grow in bundles called staphylae, to specifically feed the ants. Finally, colony size varies tremendously among these ants. Lower taxa mostly live in inconspicuous nests with 100–1000 individuals and relatively small fungus gardens. Higher taxa, in contrast, live in colonies made of 5–10 million ants that live and work within hundreds of interconnected fungus-bearing chambers in huge subterranean nests. Some colonies are so large, they can be seen from satellite photos, measuring up to 600 m3.

Based on these habits, and taking phylogenetic information into consideration, these ants can be divided into six biologically distinct agricultural systems (with a list of genera involved in each category):

Nest Construction

A limited number of species that use fungi in the construction of their nests.

some Crematogaster
some Lasius

Lower Agriculture

Practiced by species in the majority of fungus-feeding genera, including those thought to retain more primitive features, which cultivate a wide range of fungal species in the tribe Leucocoprineae.

Coral Fungus Agriculture

Practiced by species in the Apterostigma pilosum species-group, which cultivate fungi within the Pterulaceae.

some Apterostigma

Yeast Agriculture

Practiced by species within the Cyphomyrmex rimosus species-group, which cultivate a distinct clade of leucocoprineaceous fungi derived from the lower attine fungi.

some Cyphomyrmex

Generalized Higher Agriculture

Practiced by species in several genera of non-leaf-cutting "higher attine" ants, which cultivate a distinct clade of leucocoprineaceous fungi separately derived from the lower attine fungi.

Leaf-Cutter Agriculture

A subdivision of higher attine agriculture practiced by species within several ecologically dominant genera, which cultivate a single highly derived species of higher attine fungus.

Note that the farming habits of Mycetagroicus (4 species) are unknown. Also, while species of Pseudoatta (2 species) are closely related to the fungus-feeding genus Acromyrmex, they are social parasites, living in the nests of their hosts and are not actively involved in fungus growing. ‎

Castes

Nomenclature

The following information is derived from Barry Bolton's Online Catalogue of the Ants of the World.

curvispinosus. Mycocepurus curvispinosus Mackay, W.P., 1998c: 423, figs. 5, 6, 9 (w.) COSTA RICA.

Unless otherwise noted the text for the remainder of this section is reported from the publication that includes the original description.

Description

Queen

Mackay et al. (2004) - Head length (HL, anterior edge of median lobe of clypeus to midpoint of posterior margin) 0.71, head width (HW, maximum, at posterior edge of eye) 0.67, scape length (SL, excluding basal condyle) 0.58, eye length (maximum) 0.17, Weber’s length (anterior border of pronotum to posterior angle of metapleuron) 1.07, cephalic index (HL/HW X 100) 95, scape index (SL/HL X 100) 81.

Mandible apparently with 5 teeth; frontal lobes expanded, covering insertions of antennae; sides of head nearly parallel, slightly narrowed in region of eyes, which extend past sides of head; posterior margin of head concave, occipital spines poorly developed; scape barely reaches posterior lateral corner; lateral pronotal spine welldeveloped, with wide base, inferior lateral pronotal spine poorly developed; scutellum angulate posteriorly, overhanging metanotum; propodeal spines well-developed, slightly upturned, with broad base; subpeduncular process poorly developed, peduncle elongated, apex of petiole with two sets of spines.

Anterior margin of clypeus with several, erect hairs, dorsum of head with several, erect hairs, hairs on scape decumbent, dorsum of mesosoma with erect hairs, petiole nearly lacking erect hairs, postpetiole and gaster with abundant, erect hairs, hairs on tibiae mostly suberect.

Entire ant very roughly sculptured, except for mandibles, which are striate and moderately shining, much of rough sculpture, especially on dorsum of gaster, arranged in poorly defined striate.

Ferrugineous red.

References

Mackay, W. P. 1998c. Dos especies nuevas de hormigas de la tribu Attini de Costa Rica y México: Mycetosoritis vinsoni y Mycocepurus curvispinosus (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Rev. Biol. Trop. 46: 421-426 (page 423, figs. 5, 6, 9 worker described)
Mackay, W. P.; Maes, J.-M.; Fernández, Patricia Rojas; Luna, G. 2004. The ants of North and Central America: the genus Mycocepurus (Hymenoptera : Formicidae). Journal of Insect Science (Tucson) 4(27): 1-7. (page 4, queen described)

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

Achury R., and A.V. Suarez. 2017. Richness and composition of ground-dwelling ants in tropical rainforest and surrounding landscapes in the Colombian Inter-Andean valley. Neotropical Entomology https://doi.org/10.1007/s13744-017-0565-4
Dattilo W. et al. 2019. MEXICO ANTS: incidence and abundance along the Nearctic-Neotropical interface. Ecology https://doi.org/10.1002/ecy.2944
Fernandes, P.R. XXXX. Los hormigas del suelo en Mexico: Diversidad, distribucion e importancia (Hymenoptera: Formicidae).
Fernández, F. and S. Sendoya. 2004. Lista de las hormigas neotropicales. Biota Colombiana Volume 5, Number 1.
Klingenberg, C. and C.R.F. Brandao. 2005. The type specimens of fungus growing ants, Attini (Hymenoptera, Formicidae, Myrmicinae) deposited in the Museu de Zoologia da Universidade de Sao Paulo, Brazil. Papeis Avulsos de Zoologia 45(4):41-50
Mackay, W.P. 1998. Dos especies nuevas de hormigas de la tribu Attini de Costa Rica y México: Mycetosoritis vinsoni y Mycocepurus curvispinosus (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Revista de Biología Tropical46(2)
Mackay, W.P., J.-P. Maes, P. Rojas Fernandez and G. Luna. 2004. The ants of North and Central America: the genus Mycocepurus (Hymentopera: Formicidae). Journal of Insect Science 4:27.
Vásquez-Bolaños M. 2011. Lista de especies de hormigas (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) para México. Dugesiana 18: 95-133