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Ergatoid
An ergatoid (from Greek '' ergat-'', "worker" + ''-oid'', "like") is a permanently wingless reproductive adult ant or termite. The similar but somewhat ambiguous term ergatogyne refers to any intermediate form between workers and standard gynes. Ergatoid queens are distinct from other ergatogyne individuals in that they are morphologically consistent within a species and are always capable of mating, whereas inter caste individuals, another class of ergatogynes, often are not. Ergatoids can exhibit wide morphological differences between species, sometimes appearing almost identical to normal workers and other times being quite distinct from both workers and standard queens. In addition to morphological features, ergatoids among different species can exhibit a wide range of behaviors, with some ergatoids acting only as reproductives and others actively foraging. Ergatoid queens have developed among a large number of ant species, and their presence within colonies can often provide ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Blepharidatta Conops Casent0173884 Dorsal 1
''Blepharidatta'' is a rare Neotropical genus of ant in the subfamily Myrmicinae. The genus, formed by predatory species whose small colonies nest in soil or leaf-litter, has up to seven species, but most of them are waiting for a formal taxonomic treatment or confirmation. Species *'' Blepharidatta brasiliensis'' Wheeler, 1915 *''Blepharidatta conops'' Kempf, 1967 In 2015 two new species were described: * '' Blepharidatta delabiei'' sp. n. Brandão ''et al.'', 2015 * '' Blepharidatta fernandezi'' sp. n. Brandão ''et al.'', 2015 Distribution and habitat ''Blepharidatta'' is a strictly Neotropical group that was described by Wheeler (1915) from workers of ''Blepharidatta brasiliensis'' collected near Belém (State of Pará, Brazil), in the Amazon forest. Up to seven species are currently recognized, but most of them are waiting for a formal taxonomic treatment or confirmation. Based on morphological as well as behavioral data, only three species are formally recognized: ' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Blepharidatta Conops
''Blepharidatta'' is a rare Neotropical genus of ant in the subfamily Myrmicinae. The genus, formed by predatory species whose small colonies nest in soil or leaf-litter, has up to seven species, but most of them are waiting for a formal taxonomic treatment or confirmation. Species *'' Blepharidatta brasiliensis'' Wheeler, 1915 *'' Blepharidatta conops'' Kempf, 1967 In 2015 two new species were described: * '' Blepharidatta delabiei'' sp. n. Brandão ''et al.'', 2015 * '' Blepharidatta fernandezi'' sp. n. Brandão ''et al.'', 2015 Distribution and habitat ''Blepharidatta'' is a strictly Neotropical group that was described by Wheeler (1915) from workers of ''Blepharidatta brasiliensis'' collected near Belém (State of Pará, Brazil), in the Amazon forest. Up to seven species are currently recognized, but most of them are waiting for a formal taxonomic treatment or confirmation. Based on morphological as well as behavioral data, only three species are formally recognized: ''B. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Myrmecia Esuriens
''Myrmecia esuriens'', also known as Tasmanian inchman, is a species of bulldog ant native to Tasmania. Morphology The largest size of this bull ant species is reached by the queen, about long. Males ( "drones") grow to , and the worker ants average long. Within its genus, ''M. esuriens'' is a medium-sized species, as sizes for '' Myrmecia'' range from to more than . The main body of the ant is black with a single segment of the abdomen, the postpetiole, coloured an orange-red. The mandibles, antennae, and legs of the ants are also orange-red. The hair on the ant is yellow, and is short on the head, thorax, and legs and longer on the gaster. No hair is present on the scapes. The mandibles are long and straight, and of the 11 teeth present, the third, fifth, seventh, and ninth are wider and longer than the other seven. The Tasmanian inchman has good eyesight, useful outside of the nest for defence and foraging. Unusually for ants, the queens are apterous (i.e., wi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gamergate (ant)
A gamergate ( ) is a mated worker ant that can reproduce sexually, i.e., lay fertilized eggs that will develop as females. In the vast majority of ant species, workers are sterile and gamergates are restricted to taxa where the workers have a functional sperm reservoir (' spermatheca'). In some species, gamergates reproduce in addition to winged queens (usually upon the death of the original foundress), while in other species the queen caste has been completely replaced by gamergates. In gamergate species, all workers in a colony have similar reproductive potentials, but as a result of physical interactions, a dominance hierarchy is formed and only one or a few top-ranking workers can mate (usually with foreign males) and produce eggs. Subsequently however, aggression is no longer needed as gamergates secrete chemical signals that inform the other workers of their reproductive status in the colony. Depending on the species, there can be one gamergate per colony ( monogyny) or se ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alate
Alate (Latin ''ālātus'', from ''āla'' (“wing”)) is an adjective and noun used in entomology and botany to refer to something that has wings or winglike structures. In entomology In entomology, "alate" usually refers to the winged form of a social insect, especially ants or termites, though can also be applied to aphids and some thrips. An alate is a winged reproductive caste from a social insect colony in its winged form. Alate females are typically those destined to become gynes (queens), whereas alate males are occasionally referred to as "drones" (or "kings", in the case of termites). Their common behavioural function is starting a new colony, to expand their mother colonies etc. Colonies of termites and ants produce alates. It is a flight-based form of reproductive technique. In a termite colony, alates (winged males and winged females) disperse in a specific period or a month. Male and female pair to each other during flight, shed their wings, and start a new c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cardiocondyla Obscurior
''Cardiocondyla'' is an Old World genus of ants in the subfamily Myrmicinae. Distribution Approximately 70 species are currently recognized as belonging to this genus, most of which are distributed in the Old World tropics and subtropics, but a few of which occur in the temperate zone. Some species are also found widely separated in North America and the Pacific Islands, as a result of human introduction. Description Several species of this genus have a striking male polymorphism, with both winged and wingless forms. These males differ not only in morphology, but also in reproductive tactics. Closely related genera are ''Leptothorax'', '' Stereomyrmex'' and '' Romblonella''. Outbreeding ''Cardiocondyla elegans'' worker ants transport young queen ants to alien nests to promote outbreeding.Vidal M, Königseder F, Giehr J, Schrempf A, Lucas C, Heinze J. Worker ants promote outbreeding by transporting young queens to alien nests. Commun Biol. 2021 May 3;4(1):515. doi: 10.1038/s4 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ants
Ants are Eusociality, eusocial insects of the Family (biology), family Formicidae and, along with the related wasps and bees, belong to the Taxonomy (biology), order Hymenoptera. Ants evolved from Vespoidea, vespoid wasp ancestors in the Cretaceous period. More than 13,800 of an estimated total of 22,000 species have been classified. They are easily identified by their geniculate (elbowed) Antenna (biology), antennae and the distinctive node-like structure that forms their slender waists. Ants form Ant colony, colonies that range in size from a few dozen predatory individuals living in small natural cavities to highly organised colonies that may occupy large territories and consist of millions of individuals. Larger colonies consist of various castes of sterile, wingless females, most of which are workers (ergates), as well as soldiers (dinergates) and other specialised groups. Nearly all ant colonies also have some fertile males called "drones" and one or more fertile females ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Caste (biology)
Eusociality (from Greek εὖ ''eu'' "good" and social), the highest level of organization of sociality, is defined by the following characteristics: cooperative brood care (including care of offspring from other individuals), overlapping generations within a colony of adults, and a division of labor into reproductive and non-reproductive groups. The division of labor creates specialized behavioral groups within an animal society which are sometimes referred to as 'castes'. Eusociality is distinguished from all other social systems because individuals of at least one caste usually lose the ability to perform at least one behavior characteristic of individuals in another caste. Eusocial colonies can be viewed as superorganisms. Eusociality exists in certain insects, crustaceans, and mammals. It is mostly observed and studied in the Hymenoptera ( ants, bees, and wasps) and in Blattodea (termites). A colony has caste differences: queens and reproductive males take the roles of the s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Termite
Termites are small insects that live in colonies and have distinct castes (eusocial) and feed on wood or other dead plant matter. Termites comprise the infraorder Isoptera, or alternatively the epifamily Termitoidae, within the order Blattodea (along with cockroaches). Termites were once classified in a separate order from cockroaches, but recent phylogenetic studies indicate that they evolved from cockroaches, as they are deeply nested within the group, and the sister group to wood eating cockroaches of the genus ''Cryptocercus''. Previous estimates suggested the divergence took place during the Jurassic or Triassic. More recent estimates suggest that they have an origin during the Late Jurassic, with the first fossil records in the Early Cretaceous. About 3,106 species are currently described, with a few hundred more left to be described. Although these insects are often called "white ants", they are not ants, and are not closely related to ants. Like ants and some bee ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Queen Ant
A queen ant (formally known as a gyne) is an adult, reproducing female ant in an ant colony; generally she will be the mother of all the other ants in that colony. Some female ants, such as the ''Cataglyphis'', do not need to mate to produce offspring, reproducing through asexual parthenogenesis or cloning, and all of those offspring will be female. Others, like those in the genus '' Crematogaster'', mate in a nuptial flight. Queen offspring ants develop from larvae specially fed in order to become sexually mature among most species. Depending on the species, there can be either a single mother queen, or potentially hundreds of fertile queens in some species. A queen of ''Lasius niger'' was held in captivity by German entomologist Hermann Appel for 28 years; also a ''Pogonomyrmex owyheei'' has a maximum estimated longevity of 30 years in the field. Life cycle Development Ants go through four stages of development: egg, larva, pupa (sometimes cocoon, called metamorphosis dependi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
