Tapinoma ramulorum inrectum

AntWiki: The Ants --- Online
Tapinoma ramulorum inrectum
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hymenoptera
Family: Formicidae
Subfamily: Dolichoderinae
Genus: Tapinoma
Species: T. ramulorum
Subspecies: T. ramulorum inrectum
Trinomial name
Tapinoma ramulorum inrectum
Forel, 1908

Jack Longino: This species occurs in lowland wet forest habitats. It has very distinctive nesting habits and thus is more easily identified in the field than from museum specimens. It makes small carton nests on the undersides of leaves. The carton is coarse, and the nests are usually no more than 2-3cm across and less than 5mmm high. These nests contain workers, brood, and sexuals. They may also cover scale insects, such that multiple scale insects can be found on the leaf surface under the carton, while no exposed scales can be found anywhere on the surrounding plant. Often several nests are found on different leaves of the same plant, in close proximity, suggesting polydomy. On disturbance, several workers emerge and run wildly over the leaf surface for a few seconds, then retreat back inside the nest. Workers may also be found at extrafloral nectaries.


Photo Gallery

  • Carton nest of Tapinoma ramulorum inrectum. Photo by Jack Longino.
  • Carton nest of Tapinoma ramulorum inrectum. Photo by Jack Longino.

Identification

Scapes very long, about third of length extending beyond margin of vertex; in full-face view, margin of vertex evenly rounded, not medially emarginate; nests in small carton nests beneath leaves (Jack Longino).

Distribution

Latitudinal Distribution Pattern

Latitudinal Range: 15.01666667° to 8.448266221°.

 
North
Temperate
North
Subtropical
Tropical South
Subtropical
South
Temperate

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists

Neotropical Region: Costa Rica (type locality), Ecuador, Guatemala, Mexico, Panama.

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

Castes

Nomenclature

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

  • inrectum. Tapinoma inrectum Forel, 1908b: 63 (w.) COSTA RICA. Currently subspecies of ramulorum: Forel, 1912h: 57.

Description

References

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