''Ocymyrmex'' is an African
genus
Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...
of
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 ...
s in the
subfamily Myrmicinae, also commonly known as hotrod ants.
Distribution and habitat
Species are
thermophilic
A thermophile is an organism—a type of extremophile—that thrives at relatively high temperatures, between . Many thermophiles are archaea, though they can be bacteria or fungi. Thermophilic eubacteria are suggested to have been among the earl ...
(thrives at relatively high temperatures) and live in dry
savanna
A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland- grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach the ground to ...
to extreme
desert conditions in parts of the
Afrotropics.
They seem to be restricted to Southern and Eastern Africa, with no species occurring in West and Central Africa, or the
sub-Saharan
Sahelian Zone.
Their nests are located deep in the ground, usually in sandy soil, with colonies consisting of 200 to 1000 individuals.
Adapted to arid climates, they move remarkably fast during the day. They feed mainly on corpses of heat-stricken animals, living
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 Blatto ...
s and seeds.
Species
*''
Ocymyrmex afradu''
Bolton & Marsh, 1989
*''
Ocymyrmex alacer''
Bolton & Marsh, 1989
*''
Ocymyrmex ankhu''
Bolton, 1981
*''
Ocymyrmex barbiger''
Emery, 1886
*''
Ocymyrmex cavatodorsatus''
Prins, 1965
*''
Ocymyrmex celer''
Weber, 1943
*''
Ocymyrmex cilliei''
Bolton & Marsh, 1989
*''
Ocymyrmex cursor''
Bolton, 1981
*''
Ocymyrmex dekerus''
Bolton & Marsh, 1989
*''
Ocymyrmex engytachys''
Bolton & Marsh, 1989
*''
Ocymyrmex flavescens''
Stitz, 1923
*''
Ocymyrmex flaviventris''
Santschi, 1914
*''
Ocymyrmex foreli''
Arnold, 1916
*''
Ocymyrmex fortior''
Santschi, 1911
*''
Ocymyrmex gariepensis''
Bolton & Marsh, 1989
*''
Ocymyrmex gordoni''
Bolton & Marsh, 1989
*''
Ocymyrmex hirsutus''
Forel, 1910
*''
Ocymyrmex ignotus''
Bolton & Marsh, 1989
*''
Ocymyrmex kahas''
Bolton & Marsh, 1989
*''
Ocymyrmex laticeps''
Forel, 1901
*''
Ocymyrmex micans''
Forel, 1910
*''
Ocymyrmex monardi''
Santschi, 1930
*''
Ocymyrmex nitidulus''
Emery, 1892
*''
Ocymyrmex okys''
Bolton & Marsh, 1989
*''
Ocymyrmex phraxus''
Bolton, 1981
*''
Ocymyrmex picardi''
Forel, 1901
*''
Ocymyrmex resekhes''
Bolton & Marsh, 1989
*''
Ocymyrmex robecchii''
Emery, 1892
*''
Ocymyrmex robustior''
Stitz, 1923
*''
Ocymyrmex shushan''
Bolton, 1981
*''
Ocymyrmex sobek''
Bolton, 1981
*''
Ocymyrmex sphinx''
Bolton, 1981
*''
Ocymyrmex tachys''
Bolton & Marsh, 1989
*''
Ocymyrmex turneri''
Donisthorpe, 1931
*''
Ocymyrmex velox''
Santschi, 1932
*''
Ocymyrmex weitzeckeri''
Emery, 1892
*''
Ocymyrmex zekhem''
Bolton, 1981
References
External links
*
Myrmicinae
Ant genera
Hymenoptera of Africa
{{myrmicinae-stub