''Polyergus samurai'' 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 ...

slave-making ant Slave-making ants are brood parasites that capture broods of other ant species to increase the worker force of their colony. After emerging in the slave-maker nest, slave workers work as if they were in their own colony, while parasite workers onl ...

in the

subfamily In biological classification, a subfamily (Latin: ', plural ') is an auxiliary (intermediate) taxonomic rank, next below family but more inclusive than genus. Standard nomenclature rules end subfamily botanical names with "-oideae", and zoologi ...

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 ...

Distribution

It was long thought

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

to Japan, but is now also known from Korea and northeastern China.''Купянская А. Н.'' 1990. Муравьи Дальнего Востока СССР. – Владивосток: ДВО АН СССР. – 258 с. (с.209–210)

Description

The queen and workers of this slave-maker ant species are black or dark brown in color (unlike the more western species) generally matching the host species in color.

Behavior

Like other species of the genus, it is a

parasite Parasitism is a close relationship between species, where one organism, the parasite, lives on or inside another organism, the host, causing it some harm, and is adapted structurally to this way of life. The entomologist E. O. Wilson has ...

to host ''

Formica ''Formica'' is a genus of ants of the family Formicidae, commonly known as wood ants, mound ants, thatching ants, and field ants. ''Formica'' is the type genus of the Formicidae, and of the subfamily Formicinae. The type species of genus ''For ...

'' ant species. The colony begins when a young queen leaves her parent colony and mates. The queen then searches for a suitable host colony. When the ''P. samurai'' queen invades the host ''Formica japonica'' colony, she kills the resident ''Formica'' queen or queens and adopts the colony's scent. She then takes the role as queen, laying eggs destined to become her first "slave"-makers. When the original ''Formica'' work force is starting to die out, the new workers of the colony begin to search for other colonies of the ''Formica'' to raid. Once a colony is located, workers will gather above the nest before leaving in a large group to the nest. Once workers reach the host ''Formica'' nest they rush in and attempt to steal as many large

larva A larva (; plural larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle. The ...

e and

pupa A pupa ( la, pupa, "doll"; plural: ''pupae'') is the life stage of some insects undergoing transformation between immature and mature stages. Insects that go through a pupal stage are holometabolous: they go through four distinct stages in their ...

e as possible before returning to the nest with them, destined to become workers for the ''P. samurai'' colony. Such raids never kill the queen of suitable host ''Formica'' species, so the colony can be raided repeatedly over the summer.

References

External links

* Formicinae Slave-making ants Hymenoptera of Asia Ants of Japan Insects described in 1911 Taxonomy articles created by Polbot {{formicinae-stub