Myrmica americana

AntWiki: The Ants --- Online
Myrmica americana
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hymenoptera
Family: Formicidae
Subfamily: Myrmicinae
Tribe: Myrmicini
Genus: Myrmica
Species: M. americana
Binomial name
Myrmica americana
Weber, 1939

Myrmica-americana-MCZ001L.jpg

Myrmica-americana-MCZ001D.jpg

Specimen Label


At a Glance • Polygynous  

Photo Gallery

  • Worker from Middlebury, Vermont. Photo by Tom Murray.
  • Worker.
  • Typical habitat, Myles Standish State Forest, Massachusetts.

Identification

Keys including this Species

Distribution

Latitudinal Distribution Pattern

Latitudinal Range: 53.167778° to 29.703002°.

   
North
Temperate
North
Subtropical
Tropical South
Subtropical
South
Temperate

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists

Nearctic Region: Canada, United States (type locality).

Distribution based on AntMaps

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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.
pChart

Biology

This ant species nests in relatively open areas such as under grass clumps in fields.

Association with Other Organisms

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This species is a host for the diapriid wasp Trichopria myrmicae (a parasite) (www.diapriid.org) (potential host). "Trichopria myrmicae was observed associated with Myrmica americana; I had several live females from the type series in the lab for observations; the ants paid no attention to wasps and did not mutilate wasps' wings" [L. Masner, 2006, pers. comm].

Life History Traits

  • Queen number: polygynous (Frumhoff & Ward, 1992)
  • Queen mating frequency: single (Frumhoff & Ward, 1992)

Castes

Images from AntWeb

Myrmica americana casent0005700 head 1.jpgMyrmica americana casent0005700 profile 1.jpgMyrmica americana casent0005700 dorsal 1.jpgMyrmica americana casent0005700 label 1.jpg
Worker. Specimen code casent0005700. Photographer April Nobile, uploaded by California Academy of Sciences. Owned by UCDC, Davis, CA, USA.

Nomenclature

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

  • americana. Myrmica sabuleti subsp. americana Weber, 1939b: 144 (w.q.m.) U.S.A. Wheeler, G.C. & Wheeler, J. 1953a: 116 (l.). Raised to species: Creighton, 1950a: 94.

Syntype

Description

References

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

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