''Diacamma rugosum'', also known as the Bornean queenless ant, is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

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 ...

of the subfamily

Ponerinae Ponerinae is a subfamily of ants in the Poneromorph subfamilies group, with about 1,600 species in 47 extant genera, including ''Dinoponera gigantea'' - one of the world's largest species of ant. Mated workers have replaced the queen as the fun ...

. It is found in many countries throughout Southeast Asia. 20 subspecies are recognized. ''D. rugosum'' is noted for being one of the only species of ants to completely lack a queen caste. Reproduction is done entirely by workers, with all workers being fertile upon birth. However, reproduction is kept strictly under control in the nest, with only one dominant female, or

gamergate Gamergate may refer to: * Gamergate (ant), a worker ant that can store sperm and reproduce sexually * Gamergate (harassment campaign), targeting women in the video game industry * Lt. Gamergate, a character in the ''Adventure Time'' episode " Den ...

, laying all of the eggs. The gamergate will render workers sterile by mutilating their vestigial wing buds as soon as they pupate. These infertile workers, called callows, will remain loyal to the present gamergate and allow her to exercise control over the rest of the workers. This works to reduce colony infighting as it makes usurpation virtually impossible, and the only time the gamergate is replaced is if she dies naturally.

Subspecies

*''Diacamma rugosum anceps'' Matsumura & Uchida, 1926 -

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

*''Diacamma rugosum arcuatum'' Karavaiev, 1925 -

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

*''Diacamma rugosum balinense'' Karavaiev, 1925 - Indonesia *''Diacamma rugosum birmanum'' Emery, 1887 -

Myanmar Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John C. Wells, Joh ...

*''Diacamma rugosum celebense'' Emery, 1887 - Indonesia, Sulawesi *''Diacamma rugosum doveri'' Mukerjee, 1934 -

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

*''Diacamma rugosum gibbosum'' Karavaiev, 1935 -

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...

*''Diacamma rugosum hortense'' Karavaiev, 1925 - Indonesia *''Diacamma rugosum javanum'' Emery, 1887 - Indonesia *''Diacamma rugosum jerdoni'' Forel, 1903 - India *''Diacamma rugosum latispinum'' Karavaiev, 1925 - Indonesia *''Diacamma rugosum lombokense'' Emery, 1897 - Indonesia *''Diacamma rugosum longiceps'' Santschi, 1932 - Vietnam *''Diacamma rugosum ovale'' Karavaiev, 1935 - Vietnam *''Diacamma rugosum rothneyi'' Forel, 1900 - India *''Diacamma rugosum rugosum'' (Le Guillou, 1842) -

Borneo Borneo (; id, Kalimantan) is the third-largest island in the world and the largest in Asia. At the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, in relation to major Indonesian islands, it is located north of Java, west of Sulawesi, and eas ...

, Indonesia,

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu Hiri Motu, also known as Police Motu, Pidgin Motu, or just Hiri, is a language of Papua New Guinea, which is spoken in surrounding areas of Port Moresby (Capital of Papua New Guinea). It is a simplified version of ...

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

, Singapore,

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...

, India,

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...

, Vietnam,

*''Diacamma rugosum sculptum'' Jerdon, 1851 - Bangladesh, India,

Nepal Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne, सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mai ...

*''Diacamma rugosum sikkimense'' Forel, 1903 - India *''Diacamma rugosum timorense'' Emery, 1887 - Indonesia,

Timor Timor is an island at the southern end of Maritime Southeast Asia, in the north of the Timor Sea. The island is East Timor–Indonesia border, divided between the sovereign states of East Timor on the eastern part and Indonesia on the western p ...

*''Diacamma rugosum viridipurpureum'' Emery, 1893 -

Philippine The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

, India, China

References

External links

* * at
antwiki.org
' * Ponerinae Hymenoptera of Asia Insects described in 1842 {{Ponerinae-stub