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Formica
''Formica'' is a genus of ants of the subfamily Formicinae, including species 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 ''Formica'' is the European red wood ant '' Formica rufa''. Ants of this genus tend to be between 4 and 8 mm long. Ants belonging to the ''Formica'' genus possess a single knob or bump located between their thorax and abdomen. These ants primarily feed on honeydew, a sugary liquid produced by aphids. ''Formica'' ants appear to take on a shepherding role with smaller aphids, relocating them to different parts of plants to ensure a continuous food source for the aphids. By doing so, the ants can establish a relatively sustainable honeydew supply for both themselves and their colony. Etymology The genus name ''Formica'' comes directly from the Latin ''formīca'', meaning "ant". Formic acid, which is produced by thes ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Formica Dolosa
''Formica'' is a genus of ants of the subfamily Formicinae, including species 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 ''Formica'' is the European red wood ant '' Formica rufa''. Ants of this genus tend to be between 4 and 8 mm long. Ants belonging to the ''Formica'' genus possess a single knob or bump located between their thorax and abdomen. These ants primarily feed on honeydew, a sugary liquid produced by aphids. ''Formica'' ants appear to take on a shepherding role with smaller aphids, relocating them to different parts of plants to ensure a continuous food source for the aphids. By doing so, the ants can establish a relatively sustainable honeydew supply for both themselves and their colony. Etymology The genus name ''Formica'' comes directly from the Latin ''formīca'', meaning "ant". Formic acid, which is produced by these an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Formica Rufa
''Formica rufa'', also known as the red wood ant, southern wood ant, or horse ant, is a boreal ecosystem, boreal member of the Formica rufa group, ''Formica rufa'' group of ants, and is the type species for that group, being described already by Linnaeus. It is native to Eurasia, with a recorded distribution stretching from the middle of Scandinavia to the northern Iberian Peninsula, Iberia and Anatolia, and from Great Britain to Lake Baikal, with unconfirmed reportings of it also to the Russian Far East. There are claims that it can be found in North America, but this is not confirmed in specialised literature, and no recent publication where North American wood ants are listed mentions it as present, while records from North America are all listed as dubious or unconfirmed in a record compilation. The workers' heads and thoraces are colored red and the abdomen brownish-black, usually with dark patches on the head and promensonotum, although some individuals may be more uniform r ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Formica Obscuripes
''Formica obscuripes'', the western thatching ant, is a species of ant in the family Formicidae. It is native to North America. It produces large mounds covered by small pieces of plant material. The number of adult workers per colony may be as high as 40,000. ''F. obscuripes'' feeds upon a number of insect species, consumes nectar from Sternorrhyncha, homopterous insects they tend, and occasionally eats plant tissue. Biology Colonies ''F. obscuripes'' creates distinct, dome-shaped mounds composed of varying materials found in the nest's surrounding environment. This composition is primarily vegetation and is commonly called "thatch". The mounds are typically constructed in areas devoid of cover to expose the nest to sunlight. The size of these mounds is highly variable and is mostly determined by the age and health of the colony. The height ranges from 1 to 18 inches (15–45 cm), although nests of larger heights are not uncommon, and can extend down to 4 ft (1.2 m) ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Formica Rufa Group
The ''Formica rufa'' group is a subgeneric group within the genus ''Formica'', first proposed by William Morton Wheeler. This group contains the mound-building species of ''Formica'' commonly termed "wood ants" or "thatch-mound ants", which build prominent nests consisting of a mound of grass, litter, or conifer needles. The species ''Formica rufa'' or the red wood ant is the type species of this subgroup. This particular group can inhabit open deciduous woodlands, dense pine forests, and even moorland. Workers vary in size, the largest reaching about long. They can produce formic acid in their abdomens and eject it in the air when threatened.Dr Timothy BatcheloMsu.edu - Southern red wood ant Formica rufa/ref> The only function of males is to mate in flight with queens. Species previously attributed to the ''Microgyna'' group were transferred to the '' F. rufa'' group by the Wheelers in 1986. Colonies The genetic relationships in ''F. rufa'' group colonies can be complex. Co ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Formica Polyctena
''Formica polyctena'' is a species of European red wood ant in the genus ''Formica'' and large family Formicidae. The species was first described by Arnold Förster in 1850. The latin species name ''polyctena'' is from Greek and literally means 'many cattle', referring to the species' habit of farming aphids for honeydew food. It is found in many European countries. It is a eusocial species, that has a distinct caste system of sterile workers and a very small reproductive caste. The ants have a genetic based cue that allow them to identify which other ants are members of their nest and which are foreign individuals. When facing these types of foreign invaders the ''F. polyctena'' has a system to activate an alarm. It can release pheromones which can trigger an alarm response in other nearby ants. It is found in Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Romania, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Formica Lugubris
''Formica lugubris'', also known as the hairy wood ant is commonly found in wooded upland areas across northern Eurasia. Colonies construct large thatched mound nests occupied by thousands of workers, and one or more queens. Workers look similar to other species of wood ants (genus ''Formica''), but ''Formica lugubris'' workers can be identified by a fringe of hairs that reaches down to their eyes and prominent hairs between the facets of their compound eyes. Workers can reach sizes of up to 9 mm long; queens are larger, reaching 12 mm long. Behavior Each ant is able to recognize other members of their colony by a specific odor they all carry on them. Different odors allow them to also recognize other insects and ants from other colonies. When these ants encounter members of other ant species, these are usually considered intruders and are seized and dragged into the nest. Combat between ants is common and almost always ends with death of one ant. When red wood ants enco ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Formica Exsecta
''Formica exsecta'' (the narrow-headed ant or excised wood ant) is a species of ant found from Western Europe to Asia. A rare formicine ant with a deeply excised head, ''F. exsecta'' forms small mounds up to around a foot in height consisting of much finer material than that used by "true" wood ants of the ''F. rufa'' group. An interesting feature of ''F. exsecta'' is that it occurs in two distinct social forms: either a monogyne form where the colony has a single egg-laying queen, or a polygyne form where many egg-laying queens are part of the same colony. ''F. exsecta'' is placed in the ''Coptoformica'' subgenus within the genus and is closely related to '' Formica exsectoides'', an American species. Both species may form vast colony networks. The largest known polydomous system of ''F. exsecta'' consists of 3,350 nests dispersed over about 22 ha in Transylvania, Romania. In Great Britain, ''F. exsecta'' can be found only in a few scattered heathland locations in South ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Formica Ravida
''Formica ravida'' is a species of ant in the family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ... Formicidae. References Further reading * ravida Articles created by Qbugbot Insects described in 1940 {{Formicinae-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Formica Montana
''Formica montana'' is an ant in the genus'' Formica'' (wood ants, mound ants, and field ants) in the family Formicidae. A common name for ''F. montana'' is "prairie mound ant". Phylogeny and classification of Hymenoptera, Sharkey M.J. 2007. Phylogenetic relationships among superfamilies of Hymenoptera, Sharkey M.J., Carpenter J.M., Vilhelmsen L., et al. 2012. Cladistics 28(1): 80-112. F. montana are often polygynous, a single colony can have as many as 20 queens present. References Further reading * montana Montana ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota to the east, South Dakota to the southeast, Wyoming to the south, an ... Insects described in 1910 {{Formicinae-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
