Myrmecophilus

AntWiki: The Ants --- Online

The genus Myrmecophilus (Orthoptera, family Myrmecophilidae) is a myrmecophilous cricket with sixty-three species distributed world-wide. The small wingless nymphs and adults are found in a variety of ant host nests. Very little is known about their biology, it is assumed that they obtain food from grooming ants or obtaining food during trophallaxis with ants. These crickets can not "sing" and avoid direct contact with ants as much as possible.

Myrmecophilus are mostly kleptoparasites and live within ant nests (Schimmer, 1909; Wetterer & Hugel, 2008; Stalling et al., 2021).


Photo Gallery

  • Myrmecophilus acervorum with its host, Lasius sp. Photo by Thomas Stalling.
  • Myrmecophilus acervorum. Photo by Thomas Stalling.
  • Myrmecophilus fuscus. Photo by Thomas Stalling.
  • Myrmecophilus manni. Photo by Josh Kristinat

List of Myrmecophilus Species and their Host Ants

Genus and species Author and Year Ant Host Distribution Notes\Subgenus
Myrmecophilus acervorum Panzer, 1799 20 different ant species; Lasius , Camponotus, Formica, Messor, Polyergus, Tetramorium, Tapinoma Europe females reproduce parthenogenetically. Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus aequispina Chopard, 1923 France (type), Italy Red Listed. Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus albicinctus Chopard, 1924 Camponotus mitis, Anoplolepis gracilipes India (type) Subgenus: Myrmophilina
Myrmecophilus americanus Saussure, 1877 Paratrechina longicornis world wide Kleptoparasite; subgenus Myrmophilina
Myrmecophilus antilucanus Po-Wei Hsu, 2020 Anoplolepis gracilipes Indo-Pacific region Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus arboreus Maeyama & Terayama, 1994 Camponotus, Crematogaster, Tapinoma New Guinea (type) arboreal. Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus australis Tepper, 1896 Australia Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus balcanicus Stalling, 2013 Lasius niger, Cataglyphis nodus, Pheidole pallidula Macedonia IUCN Red List. Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus baronii Baccetti, 1966 Camponotus Sicilia, Malta and Tunisia Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus bituberculatus Ingrisch, 2001 Bhutan, Nepal Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus brevipalpis Chopard, 1948 Saudi Arabia subgenus Myrmophilina
Myrmecophilus caliginosus Hsu, Hugel, Wetterer, Tseng, Ooi, Lee & Yang, 2020 Anoplolepis gracilipes Malayia Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus chocolatinus Gorochov, 1992 Vietnam (type) Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus concolor Chopard, 1928 India? subgenus Paramyrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus cottami Chopard, 1922 Egypt Subgenus: Myrmophilina
Myrmecophilus crenatus Gorochov, 1986 Tapinoma erraticum Middle Asia sbugenus Paramyrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus cyprius Stalling, 2017 Messor structor Cyprus subgenus Myrmophilina
Myrmecophilus denticaudus Bey-Bienko, 1967 Afghanistan (type) Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus dubius Saussure, 1877 Anoplolepis gracilipes Malaya Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus escherichi Schimmer, 1911 Sri Lanka Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus formosanus Shiraki, 1930 Taiwan Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus fuscus Stalling, 2013 Lasius lasioides Mallorca Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus gallicus Stalling, 2017 ants France Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus gigas Ichikawa, 2001 Japan (type) Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus gracilipes Chopard, 1924 India (type) Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus haeckeli Fernando, 1962 Sri Lanka Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus hebardi Mann, 1920 Anoplolepis gracilipes Fiji, Solomon Islands Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus hirticaudus Fischer von Waldheim, 1846 Crematogaster Crimea, Macedonia Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus horii Mruyama, 2004 Japan (type) Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus ikaros Hsu, Hugel, Wetterer, Tseng, Ooi, Lee & Yang, 2020 ants Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus inaequalis Ingrisch, 2010 Borneo, Sabah subgenus Paramyrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus iranicus Chladek, 2013 Iran (type) Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus ishikawai Maruyama, 2004 Japan (type) Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus keyi Baccetti, 1975 Rhytidoponera metallica Australia Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus kinomurai Maruyama, 2004 Formica truncorum, Formica yessensis, Formica japonica, Formica lemani Japan (type) Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus kubotai Maruyama, 2004 Japan (type) Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus longitarsis Chopard, 1925 Australia Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus manni (Schimmer, 1911) Camponotus vicinus, Formica obscuripes, Novomessor albisetosus MEXICO; USA: Arizona, California, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, Texas, Utah, Washington (type) Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus mauritanicus (Lucas, 1849) Algeria subgenus Myrmophilina
Myrmecophilus mayaealberti Hugel & Matyot, 2006 Anoplolepis gracilipes Africa, Western Indian Ocean, Seychelles, Mahé, Anse Nord-Est arboreal. Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus mjoebergi Chopard, 1925 Australia (type) Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus myrmecophilus (Savi, 1819) Croatia, France, Greece, Italy IUCN Red Listed (LC). Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus nebrascensis Lugger, 1898 Crematogaster, Formica neorufibarbis, Formica obscuripes, Pogonomyrmex barbatus Minnesota, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus nigricornis Chopard, 1963 Israel subgenus Myrmophilina
Myrmecophilus nonveilleri Ingrisch & Pavićević, 2008 Yugoslavia, Serbia Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus ochraceus Fischer, 1853 Messor sp., Pheidole sp. Mediterranean region subgenus Myrmophilina
Myrmecophilus oculatus Miram, 1930 Turkmenistan (type) subgenus Paramyrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus orgeonensis Bruner, 1884 Veromessor andrei, Formica obscuripes Canada: British Colombia; USA: California, Oregon (type), Washington Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus orientalis Stalling, 2010 Jordan Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus pallidithorax Chopard, 1930 Anoplolepis gracilipes Borneo, Sarawak Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus parachilnus Otte & Alexander, 1983 Australia subgenus Myrmophilina
Myrmecophilus pergandei Bruner, 1884 Lasius umbratus, Camponotus castaneus, Camponotus chromaiodes, Camponotus herculeanus, Camponotus novaeboracensis, Formica obscuriventris, Formica pallidefulva, Formica subsericea, Aphaenogaster treatae, Crematogaster lineolata, Tapinoma sessile USA: Colorado, Georgia, Illinois, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Virginia Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus polyrhachi Ingrisch, 1987 Polyrhachis bellicosa Malesia (Gombak) subgenus Paramyrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus quadrispinus Perkins, 1899 Anoplolepis gracilipes, Pheidole megacephala, Solenopsis geminata Hawaii, Samoan Islands, Loyalty Islands (Lifou), New Caledonia tramp species.Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus sanctaehelenae Chopard, 1970 St. Helena Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus sapporensis Matsumura, 1904 Japan Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus seychellensis Gorochov, 1994 Anoplolepis gracilipes Seychelles Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus sinicus Bey-Bienko, 1956 China Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus surcoufi Chopard, 1919 Algeria subgenus Myrmophilina
Myrmecophilus teranishii Matsumura, 1914 ants Japan Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus testaceus Chopard, 1925 Myrmecia desertorum Australia (type) Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus tetramorii Ichikawa, 2001 Tetramorium tsushimae Japan (type) Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus tindalei Otte & Alexander, 1983 Australia (type) Subgenus: Myrmecophilus
Myrmecophilus wahrmani Chopard, 1963 Israel Subgenus: Myrmecophilus

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