Camponotus acvapimensis

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Camponotus acvapimensis
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hymenoptera
Family: Formicidae
Subfamily: Formicinae
Tribe: Camponotini
Genus: Camponotus
Species: C. acvapimensis
Binomial name
Camponotus acvapimensis
Mayr, 1862

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Specimen Labels

Synonyms

Widely distributed and common across African forest zone and is found throughout West Africa, extending eastwards right across tropical Africa (Collingwood et al. 2004; Taylor et al., 2018). By origin probably a savannah species, it nests in branches and insolated ground and forages on the ground, in vegetation and on trees. An avid tender of Homoptera, including aphids, coccids, membracids, planthoppers, stictococcids and pseudococcids, these ants often construct soil "tents" or roofs as protection for feeding areas. They also forage on native trees and low vegetation, as well as on cashew, coffee, kola, oil palm and plantain, as well as Anacardium occidentale, Annona muricata, Annona senegalensis, Mangifera indica, Piliostigma thonningii, Sarcocephalus latifolius, Strychnos spinosa, Terminalia avicennoides, Terminalia laxiflora, Theobroma cacao and assorted grasses. Foraging workers can be very antagonistic to Oecophylla longinoda (Taylor 1977; Taylor & Adedoyin 1978; Taylor et al., 2018).

Identification

Collingwood et al. (2004) - This is a dull black ant of moderate size. Hairs are present on the ventral head and on the vertex. Size variation in workers is low, the species appears to be monomorphic.

Keys including this Species

Distribution

This species was described from Ghana and with a broad distribution in the Savannahs and forests of the Afrotropical region (Collingwood 1985). It was recorded from Socotra, Yemen, by Collingwood et al. (2004) with no records known from the Arabian Peninsula. In Socotra, this species has a limited distribution and is confined to a few sites at higher elevations. (Sharaf et al., 2017)

In Yemen, this species appears to be uncommon, only being collected by Sharaf et al. (2017) from one locality. Workers were found foraging on twigs of Croton socotranus Balf. f. (Euphorbiaceae). It seems likely that the species may be confined to higher elevation sites above 900 m. It was also recorded from Dixam Plateau 1000–1200 m (Collingwood et al. 2004).

Latitudinal Distribution Pattern

Latitudinal Range: 25.45° to -24.88333°.

     
North
Temperate
North
Subtropical
Tropical South
Subtropical
South
Temperate

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists

Afrotropical Region: Benin, Cameroun, Eritrea, Ghana (type locality), Ivory Coast, Kenya, Liberia, Nigeria, Senegal, Socotra Archipelago, Togo, United Arab Emirates, Yemen, Zimbabwe.

Distribution based on AntMaps

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Distribution based on AntWeb specimens

Check data from AntWeb

Countries Occupied

Number of countries occupied by this species based on AntWiki Regional Taxon Lists. In general, fewer countries occupied indicates a narrower range, while more countries indicates a more widespread species.
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Estimated Abundance

Relative abundance based on number of AntMaps records per species (this species within the purple bar). Fewer records (to the left) indicates a less abundant/encountered species while more records (to the right) indicates more abundant/encountered species.
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Biology

Association with Other Organisms

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  • This species is a host for the encyrtid wasp Anagyrus lopezi (a parasite) (Universal Chalcidoidea Database) (associate).
  • This species is a host for the milichiid fly Milichia savannaticola (a myrmecophile) (Demming, 1981; Yusah & Fayle, 2014) (details of interaction uncertain).
  • This species is a host for the phorid fly Microselia deemingi (a parasitoid) (Quevillon, 2018) (encounter mode primary; direct transmission; transmission outside nest).
  • This species is a mutualist for the psyllid Diaphorina enderleini (a trophobiont) in Cameroon, Ethiopia (Aléné et al., 2011).

Aléné et al. (2011) observed a very unusual behaviour between the psyllid Diaphorina enderleini and Pheidole megacephala and Crematogaster striatula. While female psyllids are laying eggs on the lower leaf surface, workers of P. megacephala quickly pile up detritus combined with soil around and partly above the psyllids, resulting in a shelter-like structure. Those of C. striatula build carton shelters. During this procedure the adult female psyllids hardly move away from their eggs and larvae. The psyllid larvae are arranged in tight rows along the leaf veins, especially the principal one, and sometimes at the base of very young branches. The larvae are mostly sedentary and only move, slowly and steadily, when disturbed. They do not produce wax, as can be expected from the almost complete lack of the circumanal ring. Females and larvae excrete large drops of honeydew, which are immediately recovered by ants. In Camponotus acvapimensis and Myrmicaria opaciventris the workers did not build any structure around the psyllids but they were observed taking honeydew from them.

Castes

Nomenclature

The following information is derived from Barry Bolton's Online Catalogue of the Ants of the World.

  • acvapimensis. Camponotus acvapimensis Mayr, 1862: 664 (w.) GHANA.
    • [Misspelled as acwapimensis by Emery, 1877b: 364, Emery, 1896d: 372, and others; misspelled as akwapimensis by Forel, 1907e: 16, Forel, 1910c: 268, and others.]
    • Forel, 1915c: 348 (m.); Arnold, 1922: 656 (s.q.).
    • Combination in C. (Myrmoturba): Forel, 1913b: 340;
    • combination in C. (Tanaemyrmex): Emery, 1925b: 91.
    • Status as species: Roger, 1863b: 2; Mayr, 1863: 397; Emery, 1877b: 365; Dalla Torre, 1893: 220; Mayr, 1895: 150; Emery, 1896d: 372 (in list); Emery, 1897e: 604; Emery, 1899a: 501; Emery, 1901e: 63; Forel, 1907a: 31; Forel, 1907e: 16; Forel, 1907g: 90; Mayr, 1907b: 20; Forel, 1910c: 268; Forel, 1910e: 451; Forel, 1911d: 371; Forel, 1911f: 281; Forel, 1913a: 145; Forel, 1913b: 340; Forel, 1913h: 355; Forel, 1914a: 266; Forel, 1914d: 253; Santschi, 1914d: 380; Forel, 1915c: 348; Forel, 1916: 442; Arnold, 1922: 656; Wheeler, W.M. 1922a: 236, 948; Emery, 1925b: 91; Menozzi, 1926a: 41; Menozzi, 1927f: 361; Menozzi, 1930b: 118; Menozzi, 1933a: 111; Santschi, 1935a: 279; Santschi, 1937b: 104; Finzi, 1939a: 166; Menozzi, 1939c: 107; Santschi, 1939f: 167; Weber, 1943c: 336; Menozzi & Consani, 1952: 69; Bernard, 1953b: 261; Collingwood, 1985: 277; Bolton, 1995b: 84; Collingwood, et al. 2004: 488; Collingwood, et al. 2011: 448; Hita Garcia, et al. 2013: 204; Borowiec, L. 2014: 24; Sharaf, Fisher, et al. 2017: 7; Madl, 2019: 13.
    • Senior synonym of flavosetosus: Brown, 1956a: 39; Bolton, 1995b: 84.
    • Senior synonym of mombassae: Wheeler, W.M. 1922a: 948; Emery, 1925b: 91; Menozzi, 1930b: 118; Bolton, 1995b: 84.
    • Senior synonym of poultoni: Brown, 1956a: 39; Bolton, 1995b: 84.
  • flavosetosus. Camponotus (Myrmopiromis) flavosetosus Donisthorpe, 1945d: 271 (s.w.) TOGO, GHANA.
    • Junior synonym of acvapimensis: Brown, 1956a: 39; Bolton, 1995b: 100.
  • poultoni. Camponotus acwapimensis var. poultoni Forel, 1913c: 353 (w.) NIGERIA.
    • [Misspelled as pultoni by Santschi, 1914d: 380.]
    • Forel, 1915c: 348 (m.).
    • Subspecies of acvapimensis: Forel, 1913h: 355; Santschi, 1914d: 380; Forel, 1915c: 348; Wheeler, W.M. 1922a: 949; Emery, 1925b: 91; Menozzi, 1942: 180; Eidmann, 1944: 463.
    • Junior synonym of acvapimensis: Brown, 1956a: 39; Bolton, 1995b: 118.

Description

References

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

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