Archibald, Cover and Moreau also included a redescription of the Danish species "Pachycondyla rebekkae" under the new name combination "Ypresiomyrma rebekkae". A fourth species, "Ypresiomyrma orientalis" was described in 2015. Archibald and colleagues originally classified "Ypresiomyrma" as "incertae sedis" (Latin for "of uncertain placement") within the ant subfamily Myrmeciinae, as the ants could not be identified to any tribe level. However, a 2008 paper by Cesare Baroni Urbani of the University of Basel, Switzerland, expressed doubt that members of "Ypresiomyrma" were even ants. He notes that the development of the malar area (an area between the compound eyes and the mandibles) was different and not reduced, as a reduced malar is synapomorphic (key diagnostic traits) in Myrmeciinae.
History and classification
Ypresiomyrma
Ypresiomyrma | History and classification
As "incertae sedis" Ypresiomyrma orbiculata, Ypresiomyrma bartletti, Ypresiomyrma rebekkae, Ypresiomyrma orientalis "Ypresiomyrma" is classified as "incertae sedis" within the ant subfamily Myrmeciinae, as the ants could not be identified to any tribe level. They were members of the subfamily Myrmeciinae .
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It is an extinct genus of ants in the subfamily Myrmeciinae.
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Archibald, Cover and Moreau also included a redescription of the Danish species "Pachycondyla rebekkae" under the new name combination "Ypresiomyrma rebekkae". A fourth species, "Ypresiomyrma orientalis" was described in 2015. Archibald and colleagues originally classified "Ypresiomyrma" as "incertae sedis" (Latin for "of uncertain placement") within the ant subfamily Myrmeciinae, as the ants could not be identified to any tribe level. However, a 2008 paper by Cesare Baroni Urbani of the University of Basel, Switzerland, expressed doubt that members of "Ypresiomyrma" were even ants. He notes that the development of the malar area (an area between the compound eyes and the mandibles) was different and not reduced, as a reduced malar is synapomorphic (key diagnostic traits) in Myrmeciinae.
Ypresiomyrma | History and classification
Ypresiomyrma is an extinct genus of ants in the subfamily Myrmeciinae that was described in 2006. There are four species described; one species is from the Isle of Fur in Denmark, two are from the McAbee Fossil Beds in British Columbia, Canada, and the fourth from the Bol’shaya Svetlovodnaya fossil site in Russia. The queens of this genus are large, the mandibles are elongated and the eyes are well developed; a stinger is also present. The behaviour of these ants would have been similar to that of extant Myrmeciinae ants, such as solitary foraging for arthropod prey and never leaving pheromone trails.
Ypresiomyrma | Introduction
The antennae are not preserved and the eyes cannot be distinguished. The mandibles have around ten or fewer teeth. The forewings of the queen are faintly preserved, and portions of the legs are preserved and disarticulated. Some portions of the gaster are deformed and the specimen appears to be crushed, but the overall morphology of this species justifies its placement within Myrmeciinae. An undescribed worker in the form genus "Myrmeciites" may possibly be a "Y. bartletti" ant, but this cannot be confirmed due to its poor preservation.
Ypresiomyrma | "Y. bartletti"
Baroni Urbani further notes that the antennae's shape on the type species could not be properly determined, making its true placement within Formicidae indeterminable. However, the antennae of "Y. rebekkae" has an elongated scape which means the fossil is definitely an ant, as this feature is a key diagnostic trait for Formicidae. Due to this, Baroni Urbani believed that "Ypresiomyrma" could only be confidently classified as "incertae sedis" within the family Formicidae. A subsequent report by Russian palaeoentomologist Gennady M. Dlussky describing new myrmecines accepted the classification of Archibald and colleagues without mentioning the comments of Baroni Urbani.
Ypresiomyrma | History and classification
The alates were poor flyers due to their size, and birds and animals most likely preyed on these ants. "Ypresiomyrma" is not assigned to any tribe, and is instead generally regarded as "incertae sedis" within Myrmeciinae. However, some authors believe "Ypresiomyrma" should be assigned as "incertae sedis" within Formicidae.
Ypresiomyrma | Introduction
Fossils of "Ypresiomyrma" were first studied and described by Bruce Archibald, Stefan Cover and Corrie Moreau of the Museum of Comparative Zoology in Cambridge, Massachusetts. They published their 2006 description of the genus and species in an "Annals of the Entomological Society of America" journal article. The genus name is a combination of Ypresian, referring to the age of the specimens and the Greek "", meaning "ant". The minimum fossil age is approximately 54.5 to 55.5 million years. Along with the genus description, the paper contained descriptions of the type species "Ypresiomyrma orbiculata" and "Ypresiomyrma bartletti", both from the McAbee Fossil Beds in British Columbia, part of the Eocene Okanagan Highlands lake system.
Ypresiomyrma | History and classification
Archibald, Cover, and Moreau moved the species to "Ypresiomyrma" based on the similarity to the McAbee species, by the shape of the abdominal segment III, which differs from that found in the Ponerinae subfamily genera, and by the morphology of the petiole. "Y. rebekkae" can be distinguished from other species by the shape of its petiole and the size of its head, being notably larger than "Y. bartletti". The ants' somewhat angular head is also different, with other species having a rounded head. The species is known almost exclusively from queens, with only one known male ant assigned to it by Rust and Andersen.
Ypresiomyrma | "Y. rebekkae"
There are several characteristics that separate "Ypresiomyrma" from other ant genera. The waist connecting the thorax and the abdomen in "Ypresiomyrma" is composed of a single segment. The head in each species varies in shape, and mandibles are a distinct triangular shape and shorter than the head capsule with eight to twelve teeth, although they are elongated. Queens of the genus are large, measuring over . Other characters include large, well developed eyes, a rounded propodeal dorsum and a noticeable stinger.
Ypresiomyrma | Description
Yantaromyrmex is an extinct genus of ants first described in 2013. Members of this genus are in the subfamily Dolichoderinae of the family Formicidae, known from Middle Eocene to Early Oligocene fossils found in Europe. The genus currently contains five described species, "Y. constrictus", "Y. geinitzi", "Y. intermedius", "Y. mayrianum" and "Y. samlandicus". The first specimens were collected in 1868 and studied by Austrian entomologist Gustav Mayr, who originally placed the fossils in other ant genera until the fossils were reviewed and subsequently placed into their own genus. These ants are small, measuring from in length and can be characterized by their trapezoidal shaped head-capsules and oval compound eyes that are located slightly to the rear of the capsules midpoint, with no known ocelli present.
Yantaromyrmex | Introduction
A subsequent report describing new fossil myrmecines accepted the classification of Archibald and colleagues without comment on the views of Baroni Urbani. The following cladograms generated by Archibald and colleagues show two possible phylogenetic positions of "Macabeemyrma" among some ants of the subfamily Myrmeciinae; the cladogram on the right included three additional extinct genera compared to that on the left. They suggest that "Macabeemyrma ovata" and other extinct ants such as "Avitomyrmex" and "Ypresiomyrma" may be closely related to the living "Nothomyrmecia macrops".
Macabeemyrma | History and classification
Both "Y. geinitzi" and "Y. constrictus" were both moved from "Hypoclinea" to the small related genus "Bothriomyrmex" in 1873 by Dalla Torre. In his 1915 paper "The ants of Baltic Amber" Wheeler suggested both species and the newly named ""I." samlandica" would be better placed in the genus "Iridomyrmex" and noted "Y. geinitzi" to be one of the most abundant ant species in the Baltic amber he had studied. Wheeler based the placement on the structuring of the labial and maxillary palpi. This placement was unchallenged until the genus was reviewed, redefined and split up in 1992 by Steven Shattuck.
Yantaromyrmex | History and classification
These fossil species date back to the Middle Ypresian. Archibald and colleagues originally classified "Avitomyrmex" as "incertae sedis" (Latin for "of uncertain placement") within the ant subfamily Myrmeciinae, as the specimens are unable to be properly identified. In 2008, however, Cesare Baroni Urbani of the University of Basel, Switzerland, noted that no specimen in this genus allows a proper examination of the apomorphy (key diagnostic traits) of the subfamilial or familial characters. While Baroni Urbani excludes "Avitomyrmex" from Myrmeciinae and classifies it as "incertae sedis" in Hymenoptera, the morphological characters and wings show the specimens are undoubtedly a hymenopteran insect.
Avitomyrmex | History and classification
cephalotes" species group instead. This placement, however, was short lived and the ant was placed in the "M. gulosa" species group one month after it was placed in the "M. cephalotes" species group. "M. pyriformis" is commonly known as the black bull-ant, brown bulldog ant or the inch ant, which references the colour and notably large size of the ant.
Myrmecia pyriformis | Taxonomy
In 1911, Emery classified the subgenera "Myrmecia", "Pristomyrmecia", and "Promyrmecia", based on the shape of their mandibles. Wheeler established the subgenus "Halmamyrmecia", and the ants placed in it were characterized by their jumping behavior. The taxon Wheeler described was not referred to in his later publications, and the genera "Halmamyrmecia" and "Pristomyrmecia" were synonymised by John Clark. At the same time, Clark reclassified the subgenus "Promyrmecia" as a full genus. He revised the whole subfamily Myrmeciinae in 1951, recognizing 118 species and subspecies in "Myrmecia" and "Promyrmecia"; five species groups were assigned to "Myrmecia" and eight species groups to "Promyrmecia".
Myrmecia (ant) | Classification
Its elongated head and mandibles distinguish this species from those in the genus "Ypresiomyrma", which are otherwise thought to have a close phylogenetic relationship due to similarities. The waist consists of a single segment, and whether or not the ant has a sting cannot be fully determined due to the condition of the specimen collected.
Macabeemyrma | Description
Smith, who had originally established the Myrmicidae as a family in 1851, reclassified them as a subfamily in 1858. He again treated them as a family in 1871. Swiss myrmecologist Auguste Forel initially treated the Poneridae as a subfamily and classified "Myrmecia" as one of its constituent genera but later placed it in the Ponerinae. William H. Ashemad placed the genus in the subfamily Myrmeciinae in 1905, but it was later placed back in the Ponerinae in 1910 by American entomologist William Morton Wheeler. In 1954, "Myrmecia" was placed into the Myrmeciinae; this was the last time the genus was placed into a different ant subfamily.
Myrmecia (ant) | Classification
Due to the poor preservation of these ants, their phylogenetic position among Myrmeciinae is unclear, and no type species has been designated. These ants are classified as "incertae sedis" in Myrmeciinae, but some writers have classified it as "incertae sedis" within the insect order Hymenoptera. This reclassification, however, has not been accepted; instead, "Myrmeciites" remains in Myrmeciinae.
Myrmeciites | Introduction
This revision was rejected by entomologist William Brown due to the lack of morphological evidence that would make the two genera distinct from each other. Due to this, Brown classified "Promyrmecia" as a synonym of "Myrmecia" in 1953. Clark's revision was the last major taxonomic study on the genus before 1991, and only a single species was described in the intervening years. In 2015, four new "Myrmecia" ants were described by Robert Taylor, all exclusive to Australia. Currently, 94 species are described in the genus, but as many as 130 species may exist. Under the present classification, "Myrmecia" is the only extant genus in the tribe Myrmeciini, subfamily Myrmeciinae.
Myrmecia (ant) | Classification
A well-developed stinger is present in the fossilized specimens. Only a single complete male is known from all the collected specimens. The body length is shorter in comparison to the queen caste, measuring and it is also more slender. The head and mandibles are small, but the eyes are fully developed and large. The antennae are not preserved, and only small fragments of the legs are present. The gaster is smaller and more elongated, but the genitalia are not preserved.
Ypresiomyrma | "Y. rebekkae"
Even after its placement within Myrmeciinae it was still classified as "incertae sedis". However, Cesare Baroni Urbani of the University of Basel, Switzerland classified the genus as "incertae sedis" within the family Formicidae. Baroni Urbani justifies his decision by stating the characters of the ant are similar to those of "Cariridris", an insect from the Lower Cretaceous that was once placed in Myrmeciinae, but is now "incertae sedis" within the subclade Aculeata. "Archimyrmex" also shares a similar structure to other ants and insects within the order Hymenoptera. The key diagnostic traits (synapomorphies) of Myrmeciinae ants cannot be observed although the described species have elongated scapes (the first segment of the antenna), a key diagnostic trait for Formicidae.
Archimyrmex | History and classification
In 1957, an additional species of fossil ant was described from the Middle Eocene Ventana Formation in the Rio Pichileufu region of Argentina by M.J. Viana and J.A. Haedo Rossi. They placed the species into a new genus, "Ameghinoia" as "Ameghinoia" piatnitzkyi". As with "Archimyrmex", the genus was first placed in Ponerinae. It was subsequently moved to Myrmeciinae by R.R. Snelling in 1981. A second Ventana Formation ant species was described in 1981 by E. Rossi de Garcia and placed into another new genus "Polanskiella" as "P. smekali". Recovered from an outcrop of the Ventana Formation in the Rio Limay area, Rossi de Garcia distinguished the new species from ""A." piatnitzkyi" based on characteristics of the wing venation and because of the difference in size of the two type specimens.
Archimyrmex | History and classification
"Myrmecia" was first established by Danish zoologist Johan Christian Fabricius in his 1804 publication "Systema Piezatorum", in which seven species from the genus "Formica" were placed into the genus along with the description of four new species. "Myrmecia" has been classified into numerous families and subfamilies; in 1858, British entomologist Frederick Smith placed it in the family Poneridae, subfamily Myrmicidae. It was placed in the subfamily Ponerinae by Austrian entomologist Gustav Mayr in 1862. This classification was short-lived as Mayr reclassified the genus into the subfamily Myrmicinae three years later. In 1877, Italian entomologist Carlo Emery classified the genus into the newly established subfamily Myrmeciidae, family Myrmicidae.
Myrmecia (ant) | Classification
The life habits of "Ypresiomyrma" would have been similar to that of extant Myrmeciinae ants. Colonies nested in the soil or in trees, making them an arboreal nesting species. Workers were most likely solitary foragers, foraging on the ground or onto low vegetation and trees while preying on arthropods or consuming nectar. Workers most likely did not recruit or lead nestmates to food sources, nor did workers lay down pheromone trails. "Ypresiomyrma" ants most likely used their large eyes to find prey and for navigational purposes. The abundance of "Ypresiomyrma" queens collected suggests that these ants mated in swarms, but the alates were poor flyers due to their large size.
Ypresiomyrma | Ecology
Archibald, Cover, and Moreau erected the form genus as an encompassing category for all fossil ants which, while belonging to the subfamily Myrmeciinae, lack details needed for placement in other described genera. This may be due to preservation quality or positioning of the individual ant resulting in obscured details. As "Myrmeciites" is a form genus it does not have a designated type species per the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature.
Myrmeciites | Description
In his review, "Iridomyrmex" was split into a more restricted genus group while the other species which did not match the definition of that genus were moved to other genera. At that time Shattuck provisionally kept "Y. geinitzi" in "Iridomyrmex" citing a lack of specimens for him to study, while both "Y. constrictus" and "Y. samlandicus" were transferred to the genus "Anonychomyrma". The placements of "Y. geinitzi" was retained until 2011 when Shattuck and Brian Heterick again reviewed "Iridomyrmex". With more fossils to study and based on a number of characters, "Y. geinitzi" was also moved to "Anonychomyrma". The three species were reviewed again, this time in 2013.
Yantaromyrmex | History and classification
Placement of the genus into Siricidae was based on the modified abdomen tip which forms a cornus. The basal area of the wings shows distinct corrugation running from the leading edge to the rear edge, which is not seen in any other hymenopterans.
Ypresiosirex | Description
The short scape was again noted as a puzzling feature that prevented subfamily placement by Ward in a 2007 paper on the phylogeny of ants.
Myanmyrma | History and classification
This species is known from over 100 specimens collected from the earliest Ypresian Ølst and Fur Formations, found in calcareous rocks. The specimens were first studied and described by Jes Rust and N. Møller Andersen in 1999, and they named the species for Rebekka Madsen who collected the type specimen in September 1994. The holotype and paratype queen described are well preserved, although the legs are missing; the part and counterpart, GMUC No. 1995 8B and GMUC No. 1995 8A are deposited in the Geological Museum of the University of Copenhagen. At that time, Rust and Andersen placed the species into the modern ponerin genus "Pachycondyla" based on the shape of the abdominal segment VI and lack of dentition on the mandibles.
Ypresiomyrma | "Y. rebekkae"
"Ypresiosirex" was first studied by the paleoentomologists S. Bruce Archibald from Simon Fraser University in Burnaby, British Columbia and Alexandr Rasnitsyn of the A. A. Borissiak Paleontological Institute. Their 2015 type description of the new genus and species was published in the journal "Canadian Entomologist". The genus name "Ypresiosirex" was coined by the researchers as a combination of Ypresian, the age of the fossil, and "Sirex" a horntail genus name. The specific epithet "orthosemos" is derived from Greek meaning "with vertical stipes", alluding to the corrugated texture of the wing membrane at its base. "Ypresiosirex orthosemos" was one of three sawfly species described in Archibald & Rasnitsyn's 2015 paper, the other two being "Ulteramus republicensis" and "Cuspilongus cachecreekensis", from the Klondike Mountain Formation and the McAbee fossil beds respectively.
Ypresiosirex | History and classification
Formosimyrma is a genus of ants in the subfamily Myrmicinae containing the single species Formosimyrma lanuyensis.
Formosimyrma | Introduction
The paper that described the form genus included the description of three species, including "Myrmeciites herculeanus", "Myrmeciites(?) goliath", and "Myrmeciites(?) tabanifluviensis". Archibald and colleagues classified "Myrmeciites" as "incertae sedis" (Latin for "of uncertain placement") within the ant subfamily Myrmeciinae, as the specimens are too poorly preserved to be assigned to any tribe. However, in a 2008 paper, Cesare Baroni Urbani of the University of Basel, Switzerland, classified "Myrmeciites" as "incertae sedis" within the insect order Hymenoptera (which comprises the sawflies, wasps, bees and ants) because the critical characters used to identify Myrmeciinae ants, or even the family Formicidae cannot be carried out on "Myrmeciites".
Myrmeciites | History and classification
Macabeemyrma is an extinct genus of bulldog ants in the subfamily Myrmeciinae containing the single species Macabeemyrma ovata, described in 2006 from Ypresian stage (Early Eocene) deposits of British Columbia, Canada. Only a single specimen is known; a holotype queen found preserved as a compression fossil. The specimen had no wings and small portions of its legs and eyes were faintly preserved. It was a large ant, reaching in length. This ants' behaviour would have been similar to that of extant Myrmeciinae ants, such as foraging singly in search for arthropod prey and nesting in soil or in trees. "Macabeemyrma" shows similarities to extinct ants in the genus "Ypresiomyrma", and to the living "Nothomyrmecia macrops", but has not been conclusively assigned to any tribe, instead generally regarded as "incertae sedis" within Myrmeciinae.
Macabeemyrma | Introduction
The species were examined by Russian entomologists G.M. Dlussky and D.A. Dubovikoff, who they came to the conclusion that the three species, along with two unnamed species, were distinct from "Anonychomyrma" and "Iridomyrmex". Based on the differences they noted, Dlussky and Dubovikoff erected the new genus "Yantaromyrmex" in 2013 for these ants and described two new species, "Y. intermedius" and "Y. mayrinaum". The name is a combination of the Russian word "янтарь", translated as yantar, meaning "amber" and the Greek "μυρμήγκα" which means "ant". They noted the new species name "intermedius" was derived from the Latin word of that same spelling, meaning "intermediate".
Yantaromyrmex | History and classification
Myanmyrma is an extinct genus of ants not placed into any Formicidae subfamily. Fossils of the single known species, Myanmyrma gracilis, are known from the Middle Cretaceous of Asia. The genus is one of several ants described from Middle Cretaceous ambers of Myanmar.
Myanmyrma | Introduction
This placement had been followed by other authors, including in the 2003 family review by entomologist Barry Bolton. In a 2015 review of formicids, Brendon Boudinot noted that the features Dlussky listed for the inclusion of "Burmomyrma" in Aneuretinae are pleisiomorphic, being found in several ant subfamilies, and that placement of the genus into several other subfamilies is possible. However Boudinot did not make any taxonomic moves in the review, leaving the Aneuretinae placement stand at that time. In 2018 a revision found that this genus was not an ant, but was an ant-mimic wasp in the family Falsiformicidae with two other genera known from the Taimyr amber.
Burmomyrma | History and classification
Being only known from a single specimen described in 1985, the species was first placed in the genus "Iridomyrmex". The genus was then revised in 1992, and a majority of New World ants were transferred to the genus "Linepithema", including "Gracilidris humiloides", although the species lacked apomorphies that defined the genus "Linepithema". Due to position and shape of the eyes, length of the legs and other distinct features, the species has been placed in the genus "Gracilidris" in the subfamily Dolichoderinae.
Gracilidris humiloides | Classification
However, the sole specimen lacks definitive traits, and its classification in Myrmeciinae, and even its identity as an ant, has been challenged.
Macabeemyrma | Introduction
This proposal was rejected by American entomologist William Brown Jr., who placed it in the subfamily Myrmeciinae with "Myrmecia" and "Prionomyrmex", under the tribe Nothomyrmeciini. Its distant relationship with extant ants was confirmed after its rediscovery, and its placement within the Formicidae was accepted by most scientists until the late 1980s. The single waist node led scientists to believe that "Nothomyrmecia" should be separate from "Myrmecia" and retained Clark's original proposal. This proposal would place the ant into its own subfamily, despite many familiar morphological characteristics between the two genera. This separation from "Myrmecia" was retained until 2000. In 2000, entomologist Cesare Baroni Urbani described a new Baltic fossil "Prionomyrmex" species ("P.
Nothomyrmecia | Naming
In volume 1 of "Systema Naturae", Carl Linnaeus (1758) described seventeen species of ants, all of which he placed in the single genus "Formica". Within a few decades additional genera had been recognized, and this trend continued in the ensuing years, together with the development of a more complex hierarchical classification in which genera were apportioned among subfamilies and tribes. The ant species described by Linnaeus are now dispersed in eleven different genera, belonging to four subfamilies. For much of the twentieth century the number of recognized ant subfamilies varied from seven to ten, with the Aneuretinae, Cerapachyinae, Leptanillinae, Myrmeciinae and Pseudomyrmecinae being variously treated as separate subfamilies or (at different times) subsumed within Dolichoderinae, Ponerinae, Dorylinae, Ponerinae, and Myrmicinae, respectively.
List of ant subfamilies | History of classification
Ypresiosirex is an extinct genus of sawfly in the horntail family Siricidae. The genus is solely known from a single Eocene fossil found in North America. At the time of its description the new genus was composed of a single species named Ypresiosirex orthosemos.
Ypresiosirex | Introduction
The genus "Iridomyrmex" was first described by Austrian entomologist Gustav Mayr in 1862, but it had no designated type species until 1903. By then, the type species was designated as "Formica detecta", a synonym of "Iridomyrmex purpureus". The genus was placed in the subfamily Dolichoderinae in 1878, the same year the subfamily was established. Since the establishment of the genus, it suffered taxonomic misunderstanding due to the gradual development of unrelated ants being designated into the genus by early researchers who failed to identify easily recognisable features that would make them distinct from the genus "Iridomyrmex". Myrmecologist William Brown, Jr., was perhaps the first person to question the monophyly of the genus, mentioning that the Argentine ant, a former member of "Iridomyrmex", differed from the rest of the genus.
Iridomyrmex | Taxonomy
The subfamily Agroecomyrmecinae represents two extant genera and two fossil genera, once widespread in both hemispheres during the early Tertiary. The subfamily was originally classified as Agroecomyrmecini, a Myrmicinae tribe until English myrmecologist Barry Bolton raised the tribe to subfamily status in 2003. Most specimens collected are from Central America and Mexico, although one type specimen of an Agroecomyrmecinae species was collected from Ghana.
List of ant genera | Agroecomyrmecinae
Gesomyrmex is a genus of ants in the subfamily Formicinae. The genus contains six extant species, known from the Indomalayan realm, and nine fossil species. Of the extant species, four are known only from workers ("G. chaperi", "G. howardi", "G. kalshoveni" and "G. spatulatus") and two only from females ("G. luzonensis" and "G. tobiasi"). The extinct species ""G. expectans"" and ""G. miegi"", formerly placed in the genus, were excluded by Dlussky "et al."., 2009. The living species are arboreal typically building nests in the twigs of trees.
Gesomyrmex | Introduction
Phaulomyrma is a genus of ants in the subfamily Leptanillinae containing a single species, Phaulomyrma javana. The genus was first described in 1930 with "Phaulomyrma javana" as the type species, based on two males from Bogor on the island of Java. "Leptanilla tanit" from Tunisia was originally included in the genus by Wheeler & Wheeler (1930), but was transferred back to "Leptanilla" by Petersen (1968), making the genus monotypic.
Phaulomyrma | Introduction
Myrmeciites is an extinct form genus of bulldog ants in the subfamily Myrmeciinae of the family Formicidae, which contains three described species and two fossils not placed beyond the genus level. Described in 2006 from Ypresian stage (Early Eocene) deposits, all three of the described species and one unplaced fossil are from British Columbia, Canada, while the second unplaced fossil is from Washington State, USA. These ants were large, with the largest specimens collected reaching . The behaviour of these ants would have been similar to extant Myrmeciinae ants, such as solitary foraging, nesting either in the soil or trees, and leaving no pheromone trail to food sources.
Myrmeciites | Introduction
Ceratomyrmex is an extinct genus of ant in the Formicidae subfamily Haidomyrmecinae, and is one of only nine genera placed in the subfamily Haidomyrmecinae. The genus contains a single described species Ceratomyrmex ellenbergeri and is known from several Late Cretaceous fossils which have been found in Asia.
Ceratomyrmex | Introduction
Ankylomyrma is a genus of large arboreal ants in the subfamily Agroecomyrmecinae. It contains the single species Ankylomyrma coronacantha, the sole member of the tribe Ankylomyrmini. The genus is known from Africa. Nothing is known about their biology. The genus was moved from the subfamily Myrmicinae to Agroecomyrmecinae in 2014.
Ankylomyrma | Introduction
The subfamily Myrmeciinae was established by Italian entomologist Carlo Emery in 1877 under the original name Myrmeciidae. It was named after the genus "Myrmecia", the type genus of the subfamily. In 1882, the subfamily was treated as a tribe by French entomologist Ernest André within the former ant family Myrmicidae, but it would later be moved to the family Poneridae in 1905.
Myrmeciinae | Classification
A series of fossils from the three genera were examined by Dlussky and Perfilieva and based on the very notable similarities between the three species, they synonymized the three genera under "Archimyrmex", treating both "Ameghinoia" and ""Polanskiella"" as junior synonyms. A fourth species, "A. wedmannae" was described by Dlussky in 2012 based on fossils found in the Middle Eocene Messel Pit site of Germany. The specific epithet was chosen by Dlussky to honour paleoentomologist Sonja Wedmann. Before "Archimyrmex" was placed into the subfamily Myrmeciinae, Wheeler classified the genus as "incertae sedis" (Latin for "of uncertain placement") within the ant subfamily Myrmicinae, as it could not be confidently placed into any ant tribe.
Archimyrmex | History and classification
Lasiomyrma (from Greek "lasio", "hairy" + "myrma", "ant") is a South-East Asian genus of ants in the subfamily Myrmicinae. The genus is mainly known from tropical rainforests in Sundaland.
Lasiomyrma | Introduction
Agroecomyrmecinae is a subfamily of ants containing two extant and two fossil genera. The subfamily was originally classified in 1930 by Carpenter as Agroecomyrmecini, a Myrmicinae tribe. Bolton raised the tribe to subfamily status in 2003, suggesting that Agroecomyrmecinae might be the sister taxon to Myrmicinae. It has since been discovered to be one of the earliest lineages of ants, a clade from the basal polytomy for all ants. In 2014, the subfamily was expanded to two tribes. The tribe Ankylomyrmini was moved from the subfamily Myrmicinae to Agroemyrmecinae.
Agroecomyrmecinae | Introduction
Typhlomyrmex is a genus of ants in the subfamily Ectatomminae and the sole member of the tribe Typhlomyrmecini. Known from the Neotropics, the genus has a wide distribution. Some species are restricted in range, while for example "Typhlomyrmex rogenhoferi" is known from southern Mexico to northern Argentina. Little is known about their biology.
Typhlomyrmex | Introduction
The subfamily Haidomyrmecinae contains 9 fossil genera of specialized ants described from Cretaceous ambers. The Subfamily was previously treated as the tribe Haidomyrmecini and placed within Sphecomyrminae. The tribe was elevated to a subfamily in 2020.
List of ant genera | Haidomyrmecinae
Ochetomyrmex is a Neotropical genus of ants in the subfamily Myrmicinae.
Ochetomyrmex | Introduction
The type specimens of "Y. geinitzi" and "Y. constrictus" were collected in 1868, and when first described were part of the University of Königsberg's amber collection. The fossils were initially studied by Austrian entomologist Gustav Mayr who placed the two species in the genus "Hypoclinea", now considered a junior synonym of the living genus "Dolichoderus". Mayr's 1868 type descriptions of the new species were published in the journal "Beiträge zur Naturkunde Preussens". All the "Y. samlandicus" syntypes were collected by 1915, and the first 73 described were part of the University of Königsberg amber collection. These fossils were first studied by American entomologist William Morton Wheeler, whose type description of ""Iridomyrmex" samlandica" was published in the journal "Schriften der Physikalisch-Ökonomischen Gesellschaft zu Königsberg".
Yantaromyrmex | History and classification
The species can be separated from other ants by the large size, the holotype approaching . The only other Eocene ants in this size range are members of the genus "Titanomyrma", that were formerly placed in "Formicium". "M.(?) goliath" is distinguishable from "Titanomyrma" by the shape and structure of the antennae and length of the legs, which are notably shorter in "Titanomyrma". The head is very round and flattened, compound eyes are present and the mandibles are small, less than half the length of the head. The head is also small in proportion to the mesosoma. The legs are large and long, and a poorly preserved petiole is known.
Myrmeciites | "M.(?) goliath"
Haidomyrmex is an extinct genus of ants in the formicid subfamily Haidomyrmecinae, and is one of nine genera placed in the subfamily Haidomyrmecinae. The genus contains three described species Haidomyrmex cerberus, Haidomyrmex scimitarus, and Haidomyrmex zigrasi. All three are known from single Late Cretaceous fossils which have been found in Asia. "H. cerberus" is the type species and "Haidomyrmex" the type genus for the tribe Haidomyrmecini.
Haidomyrmex | Introduction
Due to the shape of "Y. geinitzi", the species may have been a herpetobiont (an inhabitant of the soils surface), but scientists suggest that these ants inhabited trees, dwelling inside epiphytes and dead plant material (such as branches).
Yantaromyrmex | "Y. geinitzi"
There are several genera which were formerly placed in Formicidae, but have subsequently been removed. These genera are now placed in other families, are considered "incertae sedis" within Hymenoptera taxonomy, or are considered invalid.
List of ant genera | Formerly included in Formicidae
The discovery of the ants confirmed the existence of Cretaceous ants, and the appearance of the workers closely matched the speculations of what Mesozoic ants looked like. As a result of these finds, E. O. Wilson and colleagues erected the new subfamily Sphecomyrminae and designated the genus "Sphecomyrma" (meaning "wasp ant") as the type genus in an article they published in 1967 in the journal "Science". The published paper included the first description of "S. freyi", which was named after Edmund Frey and his wife. A holotype and a paratype of the species were collected and moved to the Museum of Comparative Zoology, but the holotype was accidentally destroyed.
Sphecomyrma | Taxonomy
Crematogaster yamanei species of ant in the subfamily Myrmicinae.
Crematogaster yamanei | Introduction
"Avitomyrmex" is an extinct genus of ants with three described species. Fossils of "Avitomyrmex", along with other extinct Myrmeciinae ants were first studied and described by Bruce Archibald, Stefan Cover and Corrie Moreau of the Museum of Comparative Zoology in Cambridge, Massachusetts. They published their 2006 description of the genus and species in an "Annals of the Entomological Society of America" journal article. The genus name is a combination of the Latin ""avitus"" meaning "ancient" or "grandfatherly" and the Greek "myrmex", meaning "ant". Included with the genus description, the paper contained the description of "Avitomyrmex mastax", "Avitomyrmex systenus", and the type species "Avitomyrmex elongatus".
Avitomyrmex | History and classification
Anomalomyrma is an Asian genus of ants in the subfamily Leptanillinae. The genus was originally described in 1990 with the type species "Anomalomyrma taylori", based on a single dealate queen from Borneo. Workers were unknown until 2011, when two new species were described from Peninsular Malaysia and the Philippines.
Anomalomyrma | Introduction
A 2012 report describing new myrmecine fossils accepted the classification of Archibald and colleagues while disregarding Baroni Urbani's comments.
Archimyrmex | History and classification
An additional specimen was described as a possible "Sphecomyrma" male, but it was never assigned to a specific species. The specimen numbered AMNH NJ-242 was collected from the White Oaks outcrop in 1995 and is currently preserved in the American Museum of Natural History. The entire body of the male specimen is completely preserved. As most ant genera are based on the morphology of workers, assigning males to a species or a genus is rarely done unless they are taken from a colony. However, its size, petiole structure, the absence of the trochantellus and basal antennal structure are similar to that of a "Sphecomyrma" worker.
Sphecomyrma | Unplaced specimens
In 2014, Brady et al. synonymized the army ant subfamilies and their closest relatives under Dorylinae; this clade, the dorylomorph subfamilies, previously also contained Aenictinae, Aenictogitoninae, Cerapachyinae, Ecitoninae and Leptanilloidinae. The last three decades have seen a proliferation of subfamily names, as a result of three factors: (1) the realization that some subfamilies were assemblages of unrelated taxa; (2) abandonment of paraphyletic taxa, and (3) the discovery of novel fossil taxa. Seventeen extant subfamilies of ants are currently recognized, along with four extinct subfamilies. One of the fossil taxa, Armaniinae, is often given family rank within the superfamily Formicoidea. About 13 genera are "incertae sedis" (of uncertain placement), and are not assigned to any subfamily.
List of ant subfamilies | History of classification
William Morton Wheeler first made mention of the fossil he described in 1915, but he did not establish the genus "Eldermyrmex", as he commented that the ant did not have the appearance of a typical member of genus "Iridomyrmex", so he did not know where to assign the newly found ant. Because of its appearance, it was obvious the ant did not belong to the "Iridomyrmex", and so it was transferred to a new genus in 2011.
Eldermyrmex | Classification
Avitomyrmex is an extinct genus of bulldog ants in the subfamily Myrmeciinae which contains three described species. The genus was described in 2006 from Ypresian stage (Early Eocene) deposits of British Columbia, Canada. Almost all the specimens collected are queens, with an exception of a single fossilised worker. These ants are large, and the eyes are also large and well developed; a sting is present in one species. The behaviour of these ants may have been similar to extant Myrmeciinae ants, such as foraging solitarily for arthropod prey and never leaving pheromone trails to food sources. "Avitomyrmex" has not been assigned to any tribe, instead generally being regarded as "incertae sedis" within Myrmeciinae.
Avitomyrmex | Introduction
The fossils were described by Gennady Dlussky and Sonja Wedmann in a 2012 paper on the poneromorph ants of Messel, with the genus and both species named in it. The genus name is a combination of the ant genus "Ectatomma" and the Greek word "pseudo", meaning false. The specific epithet "eocenica" is derived from the Eocene age of the fossil, while the name "striatula" is based on the Latin "striatulus", meaning "marked by parallel lines".
Pseudectatomma | History and classification
Trichomyrmex is a genus of ants in the subfamily Myrmicinae. Described by Mayr in 1865, it was raised as a genus in 2015. These ants are endemic to multiple continents.
Trichomyrmex | Introduction
Genetic evidence suggests that "Myrmecia" diverged from related groups about 100 million years ago (Mya). The subfamily Myrmeciinae, to which "Myrmecia" belongs, is believed to have been found in the fossil record of 110 Mya ago. However, one study suggests that the age of the most recent common ancestor for "Myrmecia" and "Nothomyrmecia" is 74 Mya, and the subfamily is possibly younger than previously thought. Ants of the extinct genus "Archimyrmex" may possibly be the ancestor of "Myrmecia". In the Evans' vespoid scala, "Myrmecia" and other primitive ant genera such as "Amblyopone" and "Nothomyrmecia" exhibit behavior which is similar to a clade of soil-dwelling families of vespoid wasps.
Myrmecia (ant) | Taxonomy and evolution
Carpenter described the genus under the name "Lithomyrmex", with the two species respectively as "Lithomyrmex rugosus" and "Lithomyrmex striatus". Carpenter designated "L. rugosus" ad the type species for the genus. At the time of Carpenters description, the generic name "Lithomyrmex" had already been used in 1929 for a modern ant species "Lithomyrmex glauerti". As a result, Carpenter moved the two species to the new genus "Eulithomyrmex".
Eulithomyrmex | History and classification
Since the original description, the systematic status of the Agroecomyrmecini tribe has been the focus of intense debate. Bolton (2003) was the first to suggest the taxonomic instability of "Tatuidris" within Myrmicinae and raised the genus to the level of a new subfamily, the Agroecomyrmecinae, suggesting the Agroecomyrmecinae might be the sister taxon to Myrmicinae. This assessment was based on these diagnostic characters: The subfamily rank of the armadillo ants was reassessed by Baroni Urbani & de Andrade (2007) in their last systematic assessment of the dacetines. They analyzed a morphological dataset that included former dacetines, basicerotines, phalacromyrmecines, and "Tatuidris", as well as other non-Myrmicinae taxa such as the Australian genus "Myrmecia" and the Neotropical genus "Pseudomyrmex".
Agroecomyrmecinae | Taxonomy
In the type description, Engel and Grimaldi described "Myanmyrma" as a poneriod genus based on the constriction of the metasoma, with a possible relationship to either Ponerinae or Myrmeciinae. The large body size and slender nature of the genus was likened to the extant genera "Leptomyrmex" and "Oecophylla" which are both arboreal. As such Engel and Grimaldi suggested a similar habitat for "Myanmyrma". The myrmeciine affinities were suggested to be unlikely by Archibald, Cover and Moreau in a 2006 paper on fossils of that subfamily. The length of the scape is notably short, a feature seen only in the Cretaceous ant subfamily Sphecomyrminae and the ant family relatives in Armaniidae.
Myanmyrma | History and classification
Bothriomyrmex jannonei is a species of ant in the genus "Bothriomyrmex". Described by Menozzi in 1936, the species is endemic to Greece.
Bothriomyrmex jannonei | Introduction
Gauromyrmex is a genus of ants in the subfamily Myrmicinae. The genus contains two species, known from the Indomalayan realm. According to Bolton (2003), there are a further five or six undescribed species in the collections of the Natural History Museum in London.
Gauromyrmex | Introduction
Upon examination, it was revealed that the specimens are distinct from "Z. tonsora". As a result, Perrichot provided the first description of this ant in a 2014 article published by "Myrmecological News". He named it "Z. ferox"; its specific epithet means "fierce" in Latin, referencing the appearance of the head. "Z. ferox" is known from a holotype specimen, numbered JWJ-Bu18a, and many paratypes. Three of these paratypes are completely preserved workers, and two partial workers are missing their legs and gastral apices, while one worker is missing its mesosoma (the middle part of an insects body). In the same article, Perrichot moved "Zigrasimecia" to Sphecomyrminae, stating that there is little doubt that the species are members of Sphecomyrminae.
Zigrasimecia | Taxonomic history
Archimyrmex is an extinct genus of ant in the formicid subfamily Myrmeciinae, described by palaeoentomologist Theodore Cockerell in 1923. The genus contains four described species, "Archimyrmex rostratus", "Archimyrmex piatnitzkyi", "Archimyrmex smekali" and "Archimyrmex wedmannae". "Archimyrmex" is known from a group of Middle Eocene fossils which were found in North America, South America, and Europe. The genus was initially placed in the subfamily Ponerinae, but it was later placed in Myrmeciinae; it is now believed to be the ancestor of the extant primitive genus "Myrmecia" from Australia. Despite this, "Archimyrmex" is not a member to any tribe and is regarded as "incertae sedis" within Myrmeciinae.
Archimyrmex | Introduction
The fossils were described by Gennady Dlussky and Sonja Wedmann in a 2012 paper on the poneromorph ants of Messel, with the genus and four species named in it. The genus name is a combination of the ant genus "Ponera" and the Greek word "cyrtos", meaning curved. "Cyrtopone" is one of five extinct genera from three subfamilies which have species described from Messel Formation fossils by Dlussky and Wedmann in 2012. Three of the other genera "Cephalopone", "Messelepone", and "Protopone" are also placed in Ponerinae. The genus "Casaleia" is placed in Amblyoponinae, while the last genus "Pseudectatomma" is in Ectatomminae.
Cyrtopone | History and classification
Asymphylomyrmex is an extinct genus of ants in the formicid subfamily Dolichoderinae. The genus contains a single described species, Asymphylomyrmex balticus and is known from a group of Middle Eocene fossils which were found in Europe.
Asymphylomyrmex | Introduction
Lordomyrma is a genus of ants in the subfamily Myrmicinae.
Lordomyrma | Introduction
Hylomyrma is a genus of ants within the subfamily Myrmicinae. To date it contains 13 known species.
Hylomyrma | Introduction
"Cananeuretus" is one of six ant species described from the Grassy Lake site, the others being "Canapone dentata", "Chronomyrmex medicinehatensis", "Eotapinoma macalpini", "Haidoterminus cippus", and "Sphecomyrma canadensis". In the type description, Engel and Grimaldi described "Cananeuretus" as a formicomorph genus based the plesiomorphies that are suggested to define the subfamily Aneuretinae. They excluded the genus from Dolichoderinae, which "Eotapinoma" belongs to, and separated the two genera based on the well developed sting on "Cananeuretus" in combination with an apparent lack of acidopore. "Cananeuretus" is the second Mesozoic genus to tentatively be placed into Aneuretinae, after the slightly older "Burmomyrma" found in Burmese amber.
Cananeuretus | History and classification
Dorymyrmex hypocritus is a species of ant in the genus "Dorymyrmex". Described by Snelling in 1975, the species is endemic to Chile.
Dorymyrmex hypocritus | Introduction
The genus has previously been classified in the subfamily Phytometrinae within Erebidae or in the subfamily Calpinae of the family Noctuidae.
Cecharismena | Taxonomy
The morphology of "Z. tonsora" shows a variety of autapomorphies (derived traits) not seen in any other ant species, particularly the structure of the mandibles and mesosomal sculpturing. Another issue in placing "Z. tonsora" is that the status of Sphecomyrminae had rarely ever been evaluated (perhaps once) via phylogenetic methodology. Due to this, it was possible that the subfamily was not monophyletic. In 2014, palaeoentomologist Vincent Perrichot of the Université de Rennes studied a number of specimens recovered in amber from the Late Cretaceous, dating back to 98 million years. The specimens were collected from Hukawng Valley in Kachin State.
Zigrasimecia | Taxonomic history
Tropidomyrmex is a Neotropical genus of ants in the subfamily Myrmicinae. The genus contains the single species Tropidomyrmex elianae, known from Brazil.
Tropidomyrmex | Introduction
Irdomyrmex breviantennis is an extinct species of ant which belongs to the genus "Iridomyrmex". The first fossils was officially described by Theobald in 1937. A fossil of a queen was observed from France.
Iridomyrmex breviantennis | Introduction
Despite these comments, a 2012 report by Russian palaeoentomologist Gennady M. Dlussky does not make any comment in regard to Baroni Urbani's views; instead, he accepts the classification of Archibald and colleagues.
Myrmeciites | History and classification
In 1838, August Carl Joseph Corda classified "M. chartarum" as a hyphomycete in the family Sporotrichacheae, as species belonging to this family had ornate appendages resembling deer antlers. In 1854, Corda separated "M. chartarum" from "Myxotrichum" into the newly established genus, "Actinospira" because he believed it to produce conidia rather than ascospores. In 1959, Kuehn, among other investigators, reviewed the status of the family Gymnoascaceae and placed "M. chartarum" into the ascomycetous genus, "Myxotrichum" rather than the newly established genus for conidial forms, "Myxotrichella".
Myxotrichum chartarum | History and taxonomy
The other sphecomyrmin species are: "Haidomyrmex cerberus", "Haidomyrmex scimitarus", "Haidomyrmex zigrasi", and "Gerontoformica orientalis". In Barden and Grimaldi's article, the authors could not sufficiently identify the ant with enough confidence to place it in a subfamily. Instead, it was "incertae sedis" within the Formicidae. Although a recent published morphological study provided useful information on the mouthparts of basal ants, placing Cretaceous taxa is still difficult. However, synapomorphies (key diagnostic traits) could have been used to attempt to place "Zigrasimecia". Key synapomorphies for Sphecomyrmine ants include scape (the base segment of the antenna) length; petiole (narrow waist between the thorax and abdomen); and the metapleural gland (secretory glands), as indicated by Barry Bolton's diagnosis.
Zigrasimecia | Taxonomic history
The species is one of the earliest formally classified ants, first described by Swedish zoologist Carl Linnaeus in 1758 as "Formica cephalotes" in the 10th edition of "Systema Naturae" together with 16 other ant species, all of which he placed in the genus "Formica". It was later transferred to a new genus, "Atta", along with five other species by Danish zoologist Johan Christian Fabricius in 1804. In 1911, American entomologist William Morton Wheeler designated "A. cephalotes" as the type species of "Atta". It was also designated as the type species of "Oecodoma", but the genus is now a synonym of "Atta".
Atta cephalotes | Taxonomy
Agroecomyrmex is an extinct genus of ants in the formicid subfamily Agroecomyrmecinae, for which it is the type genus. The genus contains a single described species, Agroecomyrmex duisburgi. "Agroecomyrmex" is known from a group of Middle Eocene fossils which were found in Europe.
Agroecomyrmex | Introduction
Lachnomyrmex fernandezi is a species of ant in the subfamily Myrmicinae.
Lachnomyrmex fernandezi | Introduction
Dorymyrmex exsanguis is a species of ant in the genus "Dorymyrmex". Described by Forel in 1912, the species is endemic to Argentina and Paraguay.
Dorymyrmex exsanguis | Introduction
Calyptomyrmex is a genus of ants in the subfamily Myrmicinae. The genus is distributed from Africa to India and east to New Caledonia. They are mainly found in the rainforest, where they forage alone or in small numbers.
Calyptomyrmex | Introduction
Oxyopomyrmex is a genus of ants in the subfamily Myrmicinae.
Oxyopomyrmex | Introduction
Dorymyrmex pyramicus is a species of ant in the genus "Dorymyrmex". Described by Roger in 1863, the species is found in many countries of South America.
Dorymyrmex pyramicus | Introduction
The subfamily Formicinae represents 51 extant genera and 30 fossil genera that are globally distributed. Established by French zoologist Pierre André Latreille in 1809, the subfamily has more than 3,000 described species, placing it as the second largest ant subfamily. Despite this, the hyperdiverse genus "Camponotus" is the most diverse group of ants in the world, with more than 1,100 species described.
List of ant genera | Formicinae
The subfamily Sphecomyrminae contains 9 fossil genera of stem ants. Most fossilized ants from Cretaceous amber were placed in this subfamily, however revisions in 2017 and 2020 removed several genera and added former members of the subfamily Armaniinae.
List of ant genera | Sphecomyrminae