''Cataglyphis'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

ant Ants are eusocial insects of the family Formicidae and, along with the related wasps and bees, belong to the order Hymenoptera. Ants evolved from vespoid wasp ancestors in the Cretaceous period. More than 13,800 of an estimated total of 22 ...

, desert ants, in the subfamily

Formicinae The Formicinae are a subfamily within the Formicidae containing ants of moderate evolutionary development. Formicines retain some primitive features, such as the presence of cocoons around pupae, the presence of ocelli in workers, and little ...

. Its most famous species is ''C. bicolor'', the Sahara Desert ant, which runs on hot sand to find insects that died of heat exhaustion, and can, like other several other ''Cataglyphis'' species, sustain body temperatures up to 50°C. Cataglyphis is also the name of an autonomous rover that won the NASA Sample Return Robot Centennial Challenge inspired by the navigation approaches used by desert ants.

Name

It was named in 1850, with reference to the impressions of its abdomen: "Von χατά und γλυψίς der Einschnitt. Eine Andeutung auf die vielen Einschnitte oder vielmehr Eindrücke de Hinterleibs."

Description

Species of this genus are behaviourally, morphologically, and

physiologically Physiology (; ) is the scientific study of functions and mechanisms in a living system. As a sub-discipline of biology, physiology focuses on how organisms, organ systems, individual organs, cells, and biomolecules carry out the chemical ...

adapted In biology, adaptation has three related meanings. Firstly, it is the dynamic evolutionary process of natural selection that fits organisms to their environment, enhancing their evolutionary fitness. Secondly, it is a state reached by the po ...

to dry and hot habitats.

Navigational behaviour

In the Sahara, ants live where no bushes or clumps of grass are available to protect them, and where tracks are covered by wind-blown sand in seconds. The midday sun is so hot that even the permanent residents, sand lizards, insects, and a few birds, have to take shelter, but this is when, for not much more than an hour, ''Cataglyphis'' spp. are to come out of their underground nests and forage. They can withstand higher temperatures than any other insects. They pour out on to the sand and search for insects that have died of heat stress. Each ant dashes about in zigzag patterns, but as soon as one is lucky enough to find a tiny insect corpse, it has to get it back to the nest fast before the ant dies of the heat. It does not retrace the zig-zagging path of its outward journey; even if a scent trail made this possible, such a route would be time-wasting. Instead, it runs in a straight line directly back to its nest hole. On its outward journey, it zig-zags right and left. Every time it changes direction, it lifts its head and wheels around to take a bearing on the sun. In addition, it has to remember how far it went on each straight run. When time to head for home, it has to sum all these data and come out with the precise direction needed. Some outward journeys take an ant a quarter of an hour, with sun sightings every few seconds. In an experiment, individual ants were fitted with an apparatus that blocked direct sight of the sun, while giving a false impression of where the sun was, using a mirror. When these ants headed for home, they dashed off to a point in the desert displaced by just the amount that the mirror had shifted the sun's position.

Distribution

At least five different species of ''Cataglyphis'' occur in the

Sahara Desert , photo = Sahara real color.jpg , photo_caption = The Sahara taken by Apollo 17 astronauts, 1972 , map = , map_image = , location = , country = , country1 = , ...

, which may be considered the center of distribution for this genus. Five species also occur in

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

. Some species reach into southern

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

, southern

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...

, the former

Yugoslavia Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...

, the European part of

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

, and the Aral-

Caspian Caspian can refer to: *The Caspian Sea *The Caspian Depression, surrounding the northern part of the Caspian Sea *The Caspians, the ancient people living near the Caspian Sea *Caspian languages, collection of languages and dialects of Caspian peopl ...

area near Tijanchan.

Parthenogenesis

Queen ants of the species ''C. cursor'' can produce female reproductive progeny (i.e. potential new queens or

gyne The gyne (, from Greek γυνή, "woman") is the primary reproductive female caste of social insects (especially ants, wasps, and bees of order Hymenoptera, as well as termites). Gynes are those destined to become queens, whereas female workers ...

s) by

parthenogenesis Parthenogenesis (; from the Greek grc, παρθένος, translit=parthénos, lit=virgin, label=none + grc, γένεσις, translit=génesis, lit=creation, label=none) is a natural form of asexual reproduction in which growth and development ...

. Parthenogenesis, in this case, involves, a process (automictic

thelytoky Thelytoky (from the Greek ''thēlys'' "female" and ''tokos'' "birth") is a type of parthenogenesis in which females are produced from unfertilized eggs, as for example in aphids. Thelytokous parthenogenesis is rare among animals and reported in a ...

) by which two haploid products of

meiosis Meiosis (; , since it is a reductional division) is a special type of cell division of germ cells in sexually-reproducing organisms that produces the gametes, such as sperm or egg cells. It involves two rounds of division that ultimately resu ...

fuse to form a diploid

zygote A zygote (, ) is a eukaryotic cell formed by a fertilization event between two gametes. The zygote's genome is a combination of the DNA in each gamete, and contains all of the genetic information of a new individual organism. In multicellula ...

that develops into a gyne. Queens can also produce female worker ants by sexual reproduction involving

fertilisation Fertilisation or fertilization (see spelling differences), also known as generative fertilisation, syngamy and impregnation, is the fusion of gametes to give rise to a new individual organism or offspring and initiate its development. Proce ...

of eggs.

Species

*''

Cataglyphis abyssinica ''Cataglyphis'' is a genus of ant, desert ants, in the subfamily Formicinae. Its most famous species is ''C. bicolor'', the Sahara Desert ant, which runs on hot sand to find insects that died of heat exhaustion, and can, like other several ot ...

'' (Forel, 1904) *''

Cataglyphis acutinodis ''Cataglyphis'' is a genus of ant, desert ants, in the subfamily Formicinae. Its most famous species is ''C. bicolor'', the Sahara Desert ant, which runs on hot sand to find insects that died of heat exhaustion, and can, like other several ot ...

'' Collingwood & Agosti, 1996 *''

Cataglyphis adenensis ''Cataglyphis'' is a genus of ant, desert ants, in the subfamily Formicinae. Its most famous species is ''C. bicolor'', the Sahara Desert ant, which runs on hot sand to find insects that died of heat exhaustion, and can, like other several o ...

'' (Forel, 1904) *''

Cataglyphis aenescens ''Cataglyphis'' is a genus of ant, desert ants, in the subfamily Formicinae. Its most famous species is ''C. bicolor'', the Sahara Desert ant, which runs on hot sand to find insects that died of heat exhaustion, and can, like other several o ...

'' (Nylander, 1849) *''

Cataglyphis agostii ''Cataglyphis'' is a genus of ant, desert ants, in the subfamily Formicinae. Its most famous species is ''C. bicolor'', the Sahara Desert ant, which runs on hot sand to find insects that died of heat exhaustion, and can, like other several ot ...

'' Sharaf, 2007 *'' Cataglyphis albicans'' (Roger, 1859) *''

Cataglyphis alibabae ''Cataglyphis'' is a genus of ant, desert ants, in the subfamily Formicinae. Its most famous species is ''C. bicolor'', the Sahara Desert ant, which runs on hot sand to find insects that died of heat exhaustion, and can, like other several oth ...

'' Pisarski, 1965 *'' Cataglyphis altisquamis'' (André, 1881) *'' Cataglyphis arenaria'' Finzi, 1940 *'' Cataglyphis argentata'' (Radoszkowsky, 1876) *'' Cataglyphis asiriensis'' Collingwood, 1985 *'' Cataglyphis aurata'' Menozzi, 1932 *'' Cataglyphis bellicosa'' (Karavaiev, 1924) *'' Cataglyphis bergiana'' Arnol'di, 1964 *''

Cataglyphis bicolor ''Cataglyphis'' is a genus of ant, desert ants, in the subfamily Formicinae. Its most famous species is ''C. bicolor'', the Sahara Desert ant, which runs on hot sand to find insects that died of heat exhaustion, and can, like other several ot ...

'' (Fabricius, 1793) — Sahara Desert ant *'' Cataglyphis bicoloripes'' Walker, 1871 *'' Cataglyphis bombycina'' (Roger, 1859) — Saharan silver ant *'' Cataglyphis bucharica'' Emery, 1925 *''

Cataglyphis cana ''Cataglyphis'' is a genus of ant, desert ants, in the subfamily Formicinae. Its most famous species is ''C. bicolor'', the Sahara Desert ant, which runs on hot sand to find insects that died of heat exhaustion, and can, like other several oth ...

'' Santschi, 1925 *'' Cataglyphis cinnamomea'' (Karavaiev, 1910) *'' Cataglyphis cugiai'' Menozzi, 1939 *'' Cataglyphis cuneinodis'' Arnol'di, 1964 *''

Cataglyphis cursor ''Cataglyphis cursor'' is a species of ant in the genus ''Cataglyphis''. Described in 1846, it is known only from the Mediterranean parts of France. Reproduction Parthenogenesis is a natural form of reproduction in which growth and development ...

'' (Fonscolombe, 1846) *'' Cataglyphis diehlii'' (Forel, 1902) *''

Cataglyphis douwesi ''Cataglyphis'' is a genus of ant, desert ants, in the subfamily Formicinae. Its most famous species is ''C. bicolor'', the Sahara Desert ant, which runs on hot sand to find insects that died of heat exhaustion, and can, like other several othe ...

'' De Haro & Collingwood, 2000 *'' Cataglyphis elegantissima'' Arnol'di, 1968 *'' Cataglyphis emeryi'' (Karavaiev, 1911) *'' Cataglyphis emmae'' (Forel, 1909) *''

Cataglyphis espadaleri ''Cataglyphis'' is a genus of ant, desert ants, in the subfamily Formicinae. Its most famous species is ''C. bicolor'', the Sahara Desert ant, which runs on hot sand to find insects that died of heat exhaustion, and can, like other several ot ...

'' Cagniant, 2009 *'' Cataglyphis flavitibia'' Chang & He, 2002 *'' Cataglyphis flavobrunnea'' Collingwood & Agosti, 1996 *'' Cataglyphis floricola'' Tinaut, 1993 *''

Cataglyphis foreli ''Cataglyphis'' is a genus of ant, desert ants, in the subfamily Formicinae. Its most famous species is ''C. bicolor'', the Sahara Desert ant, which runs on hot sand to find insects that died of heat exhaustion, and can, like other several oth ...

'' (Ruzsky, 1903) *''

Cataglyphis fortis ''Cataglyphis fortis'' is a species of ant in the subfamily Formicinae. Found in Tunisia, the ants inhabit salt pans where they forage dead arthropods. Navigation skills and internal pedometer Measuring the sun's angle This ant ventures far f ...

'' (Forel, 1902) — Sahara desert *'' Cataglyphis fossilis'' Cagniant, 2009 *'' Cataglyphis frigida'' (André, 1881) *'' Cataglyphis gadeai'' De Haro & Collingwood, 2003 *'' Cataglyphis gaetula'' Santschi, 1929 *'' Cataglyphis glabilabia'' Chang & He, 2002 *'' Cataglyphis gracilens'' Santschi, 1929 *'' Cataglyphis hannae'' Agosti, 1994 —

Tunisia ) , image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa , image_map2 = , capital = Tunis , largest_city = capital , ...

*''

Cataglyphis harteni ''Cataglyphis'' is a genus of ant, desert ants, in the subfamily Formicinae. Its most famous species is ''C. bicolor'', the Sahara Desert ant, which runs on hot sand to find insects that died of heat exhaustion, and can, like other several othe ...

'' Collingwood & Agosti, 1996 *'' Cataglyphis helanensis'' Chang & He, 2002 *'' Cataglyphis holgerseni'' Collingwood & Agosti, 1996 *'' Cataglyphis humeya'' Tinaut, 1991 *'' Cataglyphis iberica'' (Emery, 1906) *'' Cataglyphis indica'' Pisarski, 1962 *'' Cataglyphis isis'' (Forel, 1913) *'' Cataglyphis israelensis'' Ionescu & Eyer, 2016 *'' Cataglyphis italica'' (Emery, 1906) *''

Cataglyphis karakalensis ''Cataglyphis'' is a genus of ant, desert ants, in the subfamily Formicinae. Its most famous species is ''C. bicolor'', the Sahara Desert ant, which runs on hot sand to find insects that died of heat exhaustion, and can, like other several ot ...

'' Arnol'di, 1964 *''

Cataglyphis kurdistanica ''Cataglyphis'' is a genus of ant, desert ants, in the subfamily Formicinae. Its most famous species is ''C. bicolor'', the Sahara Desert ant, which runs on hot sand to find insects that died of heat exhaustion, and can, like other several ot ...

'' Pisarski, 1965 *'' Cataglyphis laevior'' Santschi, 1929 *''

Cataglyphis laylae ''Cataglyphis'' is a genus of ant, desert ants, in the subfamily Formicinae. Its most famous species is ''C. bicolor'', the Sahara Desert ant, which runs on hot sand to find insects that died of heat exhaustion, and can, like other several othe ...

'' Collingwood, 2011 *''

Cataglyphis livida ''Cataglyphis'' is a genus of ant, desert ants, in the subfamily Formicinae. Its most famous species is ''C. bicolor'', the Sahara Desert ant, which runs on hot sand to find insects that died of heat exhaustion, and can, like other several ot ...

'' (André, 1881) *''

Cataglyphis longipedem ''Cataglyphis'' is a genus of ant, desert ants, in the subfamily Formicinae. Its most famous species is ''C. bicolor'', the Sahara Desert ant, which runs on hot sand to find insects that died of heat exhaustion, and can, like other several ot ...

'' (Eichwald, 1841) *''

Cataglyphis lunatica ''Cataglyphis'' is a genus of ant, desert ants, in the subfamily Formicinae. Its most famous species is ''C. bicolor'', the Sahara Desert ant, which runs on hot sand to find insects that died of heat exhaustion, and can, like other several ot ...

'' Baroni Urbani, 1969 *'' Cataglyphis machmal'' Radchenko & Arakelian, 1991 *'' Cataglyphis marroui'' Cagniant, 2009 *'' Cataglyphis mauritanica'' (Emery, 1906) *''

Cataglyphis minima ''Cataglyphis'' is a genus of ant, desert ants, in the subfamily Formicinae. Its most famous species is ''C. bicolor'', the Sahara Desert ant, which runs on hot sand to find insects that died of heat exhaustion, and can, like other several ot ...

'' Collingwood, 1985 *''

Cataglyphis nigra ''Cataglyphis nigra'', also known as the black desert ant, is a species of ant in the genus ''Cataglyphis''. Range This species is found in North Africa, the Levant, and the northern regions of the Arabian Peninsula. Behavior Like other ants in ...

'' (André, 1881) *'' Cataglyphis nigripes'' Arnol'di, 1964 *''

Cataglyphis nodus ''Cataglyphis'' is a genus of ant, desert ants, in the subfamily Formicinae. Its most famous species is ''C. bicolor'', the Sahara Desert ant, which runs on hot sand to find insects that died of heat exhaustion, and can, like other several oth ...

'' (Brullé, 1833) —

Dalmatia Dalmatia (; hr, Dalmacija ; it, Dalmazia; see #Name, names in other languages) is one of the four historical region, historical regions of Croatia, alongside Croatia proper, Slavonia, and Istria. Dalmatia is a narrow belt of the east shore of ...

*'' Cataglyphis oasium'' Menozzi, 1932 *'' Cataglyphis opacior'' Collingwood & Agosti, 1996 *'' Cataglyphis otini'' Santschi, 1929 *''

Cataglyphis oxiana ''Cataglyphis'' is a genus of ant, desert ants, in the subfamily Formicinae. Its most famous species is ''C. bicolor'', the Sahara Desert ant, which runs on hot sand to find insects that died of heat exhaustion, and can, like other several ot ...

'' Arnol'di, 1964 *'' Cataglyphis pallida'' Mayr, 1877 *'' Cataglyphis piligera'' Arnol'di, 1964 *'' Cataglyphis piliscapa'' (Forel, 1901) *'' Cataglyphis pilisquamis'' Santschi, 1929 *'' Cataglyphis pubescens'' Radchenko & Paknia, 2010 *''

Cataglyphis rosenhaueri ''Cataglyphis'' is a genus of ant, desert ants, in the subfamily Formicinae. Its most famous species is ''C. bicolor'', the Sahara Desert ant, which runs on hot sand to find insects that died of heat exhaustion, and can, like other several ot ...

'' Santschi, 1925 *'' Cataglyphis rubra'' (Forel, 1903) *'' Cataglyphis sabulosa'' Kugler, 1981 *'' Cataglyphis saharae'' Santschi, 1929 *'' Cataglyphis savignyi'' (Dufour, 1862) — Sahara desert *''

Cataglyphis semitonsa ''Cataglyphis'' is a genus of ant, desert ants, in the subfamily Formicinae. Its most famous species is ''C. bicolor'', the Sahara Desert ant, which runs on hot sand to find insects that died of heat exhaustion, and can, like other several oth ...

'' Santschi, 1929 *''

Cataglyphis setipes ''Cataglyphis'' is a genus of ant, desert ants, in the subfamily Formicinae. Its most famous species is ''C. bicolor'', the Sahara Desert ant, which runs on hot sand to find insects that died of heat exhaustion, and can, like other several othe ...

'' (Forel, 1894) *'' Cataglyphis shuaibensis'' Collingwood & Agosti, 1996 *''

Cataglyphis stigmata ''Cataglyphis'' is a genus of ant, desert ants, in the subfamily Formicinae. Its most famous species is ''C. bicolor'', the Sahara Desert ant, which runs on hot sand to find insects that died of heat exhaustion, and can, like other several othe ...

'' Radchenko & Paknia, 2010 *'' Cataglyphis tartessica'' Amor & Ortega, 2014 *'' Cataglyphis takyrica'' Dlussky, Soyunov & Zabelin, 1990 *'' Cataglyphis theryi'' Santschi, 1921 *''

Cataglyphis urens ''Cataglyphis'' is a genus of ant, desert ants, in the subfamily Formicinae. Its most famous species is ''C. bicolor'', the Sahara Desert ant, which runs on hot sand to find insects that died of heat exhaustion, and can, like other several ot ...

'' Collingwood, 1985 *'' Cataglyphis vaucheri'' (Emery, 1906) *'' Cataglyphis velox'' Santschi, 1929 *''

Cataglyphis viatica ''Cataglyphis'' is a genus of ant, desert ants, in the subfamily Formicinae. Its most famous species is ''C. bicolor'', the Sahara Desert ant, which runs on hot sand to find insects that died of heat exhaustion, and can, like other several othe ...

'' (Fabricius, 1787) *'' Cataglyphis viaticoides'' (André, 1881) *'' Cataglyphis zakharovi'' Radchenko, 1997

References

External links

* * YouTube
Video of ''Cataglyphis'' catching prey in the Sahara desert
{{Taxonbar, from=Q2514739 Formicinae Ant genera Taxa named by Arnold Förster Taxonomy articles created by Polbot