Acromyrmex fracticornis
Acromyrmex fracticornis | |
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Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Class: | Insecta |
Order: | Hymenoptera |
Family: | Formicidae |
Subfamily: | Myrmicinae |
Tribe: | Attini |
Genus: | Acromyrmex |
Species: | A. fracticornis |
Binomial name | |
Acromyrmex fracticornis (Forel, 1909) | |
Synonyms | |
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This species was found to be a pest in pastures in Paraguay, feeding on the grasses Cenchrus ciliaris, Chloris gayana, Cynodon nlemfuensis, Digitaria eriantha, Megathyrsus maximus, Paspalum notatum, Urochloa brizantha, Urochloa decumbens, Urochloa mosambicensis and Urochloa ruziziensis (Sarubbi & Ramirez, 2020).
Identification
Distribution
Latitudinal Distribution Pattern
Latitudinal Range: -16.256667° to -34.604°.
North Temperate |
North Subtropical |
Tropical | South Subtropical |
South Temperate |
- Source: AntMaps
Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists
Neotropical Region: Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay (type locality), Uruguay.
Distribution based on AntMaps
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. |
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. |
Biology
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Nesting Habits
Acromyrmex fracticornis constructs conspicuous nest turrets made of interlaced plant fragments. Corsarinsky et al. (2020) asked whether turrets are built by merely piling up nearby materials around the nest entrance, or whether ants incorporate different materials as the turret develops. Their experiments revealed that consolidation of the turret occurred both over time and from its base upwards. Different building behaviors are involved, namely (1) intermeshing grass fragments and twigs around the nest opening, (2) cementing the resulting mesh with soil pellets, and (3) lining the inner gallery wall. Nest turrets do not simply arise by the arbitrary deposition of nearby materials, since workers both selectively incorporate large materials at the beginning, and respond to the developing structure by reinforcing the intermeshed plant fragments over time.
Castes
Nomenclature
The following information is derived from Barry Bolton's Online Catalogue of the Ants of the World.
- fracticornis. Atta (Moellerius) fracticornis Forel, 1909a: 257 (w.) PARAGUAY.
- Type-material: syntype workers (number not stated).
- Type-locality: Paraguay: San Bernardino (K.A.G. Fiebrig).
- Type-depositories: MHNG.
- Fowler, 1988: 286 (m.).
- Combination in Acromyrmex (Moellerius): Forel, 1913l: 236.
- Subspecies of landolti: Gonçalves, 1961: 126; Kempf, 1972a: 16.
- Status as species: Emery, 1924d: 351; Santschi, 1925a: 388 (in key); Kusnezov, 1953b: 338; Kusnezov, 1956: 34 (in key); Fowler, 1988: 286; Brandão, 1991: 323; Bolton, 1995b: 55; Wild, 2007b: 30.
- Senior synonym of jorgenseni: Gonçalves, 1961: 126; Kempf, 1972a: 16; Fowler, 1988: 286; Brandão, 1991: 323; Bolton, 1995b: 55.
- Distribution: Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay.
- jorgenseni. Acromyrmex (Moellerius) fracticornis var. jorgenseni Forel, 1913l: 236 (w.q.) ARGENTINA (Mendoza).
- Type-material: syntype workers, syntype queens (numbers not stated).
- Type-locality: Argentina: Mendoza (P. Jörgensen).
- Type-depository: MHNG.
- [Misspelled as joergenseni by Bruch, 1928: 346, and others.]
- Bruch, 1916: 325 (m.).
- Subspecies of fracticornis: Bruch, 1915: 529; Bruch, 1916: 325; Gallardo, 1916d: 335; Santschi, 1916e: 389; Emery, 1924d: 351; Santschi, 1925a: 388 (in key); Bruch, 1928: 346; Santschi, 1929d: 304.
- Junior synonym of fracticornis: Gonçalves, 1961: 126; Kempf, 1972a: 16; Fowler, 1988: 286; Brandão, 1991: 323; Bolton, 1995b: 55.
Description
References
- Cantone S. 2017. Winged Ants, The Male, Dichotomous key to genera of winged male ants in the World, Behavioral ecology of mating flight (self-published).
- Cosarinsky, M.I., Römer, D., Roces, F. 2020. Nest turrets of Acromyrmex grass-cutting ants: Micromorphology reveals building techniques and construction dynamics. Insects 11, 140 (doi:10.3390/insects11020140).
- Culebra Mason, S., Catalano, P., Sgarbi, C., Verzero, F., Blondel, D. Ricci, M., Antonini, A. 2009. Utilización de trampas Pitfall con distintos atrayentes alimentarios para el monitoreo de hormigas en sistemas pastoriles. Boletin de Sanidad Vegetal Plagas 35: 187-192.
- Forel, A. 1909a. Ameisen aus Guatemala usw., Paraguay und Argentinien (Hym.). Dtsch. Entomol. Z. 1909: 239-269 (page 257, worker described)
- Forel, A. 1913m. Fourmis d'Argentine, du Brésil, du Guatémala & de Cuba reçues de M. M. Bruch, Prof. v. Ihering, Mlle Baez, M. Peper et M. Rovereto. Bull. Soc. Vaudoise Sci. Nat. 49: 203-250 (page 236, Combination in Acromyrmex (Moellerius))
- Fowler, H. G. 1988b. Taxa of the neotropical grass-cutting ants, Acromyrmex (Hymenoptera: Formicidae: Attini). Científica (Jaboticabal) 16: 281-295 (page 286, male described, Revived status as species)
- Gonçalves, C. R. 1961. O genero Acromyrmex no Brasil (Hym. Formicidae). Stud. Entomol. 4: 113-180 (page 126, Subspecies of landolti, and senior synonym of jorgenseni)
- Kempf, W. W. 1972b. Catálogo abreviado das formigas da regia~o Neotropical. Stud. Entomol. 15: 3-344 (page 16, Subspecies of landolti, and senior synonym of jorgenseni)
- Sarubbi, H.J., Ramirez, M.B. 2020. Pest insects in natural and sown pastures of Paraguay. Tropical Grasslands-Forrajes Tropicales 8(2) 158–161 (doi:10.17138TGFT(8)158-161).
References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics
- Bonetto A. A. 1959. Las hormigas "cortadoras" de la Provincia de Santa Fé (generos: Atta y Acromyrmex). Santa Fé, Argentina: Ministerio de Agricultura y Ganadería (Dirección General de Recurzos Naturales), 79 pp.
- Brandao, C.R.F. 1991. Adendos ao catalogo abreviado das formigas da regiao neotropical (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Rev. Bras. Entomol. 35: 319-412.
- Bruch C. 1916. Contribución al estudio de las hormigas de la provincia de San Luis. Revista del Museo de La Plata 23: 291-357.
- Bruch C. 1928. Estudios mirmecológicos. Anales del Museo Nacional de Historia Natural de Buenos Aires 34: 341-360.
- Cuezzo, F. 1998. Formicidae. Chapter 42 in Morrone J.J., and S. Coscaron (dirs) Biodiversidad de artropodos argentinos: una perspectiva biotaxonomica Ediciones Sur, La Plata. Pages 452-462.
- Culebra Mason S., C. Sgarbi, J. Chila Covachina, J. M. Pena, N. Dubrovsky Berensztein, C. Margaria, and M. Ricci. 2017. Acromyrmex Mayr (Hymenoptera: Formicidae: Myrmicinae): species distribution patterns in the province of Buenos Aires, Argentina. Rev. Mus. Argentino Cienc. Nat. 19(2) 185-199.
- Fernández, F. and S. Sendoya. 2004. Lista de las hormigas neotropicales. Biota Colombiana Volume 5, Number 1.
- Forel A. 1913. Fourmis d'Argentine, du Brésil, du Guatémala & de Cuba reçues de M. M. Bruch, Prof. v. Ihering, Mlle Baez, M. Peper et M. Rovereto. Bulletin de la Société Vaudoise des Sciences Naturelles. 49: 203-250.
- Fowler H. G. 1985. Leaf-cutting ants of the genera Atta and Acromyrmex of Paraguay (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) Dtsch. Ent. Z., N. F. 32(1-3): 19-34.
- Fowler H. G. 1988. Taxa of the neotropical grass-cutting ants, Acromyrmex (Hymenoptera: Formicidae: Attini). Científica (Jaboticabal) 16: 281-295.
- Gallardo A. 1916. Notes systématiques et éthologiques sur les fourmis attines de la République Argentine. Anales del Museo Nacional de Historia Natural de Buenos Aires 28: 317-344.
- Gonçalves C. R. 1961. O genero Acromyrmex no Brasil (Hym. Formicidae). Stud. Entomol. 4: 113-180.
- Kempf, W.W. 1972. Catalago abreviado das formigas da regiao Neotropical (Hym. Formicidae) Studia Entomologica 15(1-4).
- Kusnezov N. 1956. Claves para la identificación de las hormigas de la fauna argentina. Idia 104-105: 1-56.
- Kusnezov N. 1978. Hormigas argentinas: clave para su identificación. Miscelánea. Instituto Miguel Lillo 61:1-147 + 28 pl.
- Murua A. F., F. Cuezzo, and J. C. Acosta. 1999. La fauna de hormigas del Gran Bajo Oriental del departamento Valle Fertíl (San Juan, Argentina). Revista de la Sociedad Entomológica Argentina 58(3/4): 135-138.
- Pignalberi C. T. 1961. Contribución al conocimiento de los formícidos de la provincia de Santa Fé. Pp. 165-173 in: Comisión Investigación Científica; Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (Argentina) 1961. Actas y trabajos del primer Congreso Sudamericano de Zoología (La Plata, 12-24 octubre 1959). Tomo III. Buenos Aires: Librart, 276 pp.
- Santschi F. 1925. Fourmis des provinces argentines de Santa Fe, Catamarca, Santa Cruz, Córdoba et Los Andes. Comunicaciones del Museo Nacional de Historia Natural "Bernardino Rivadavia" 2: 149-168.
- Santschi F. 1925. Revision du genre Acromyrmex Mayr. Revue Suisse de Zoologie 31: 355-398.
- Silva F. H. O., J. H. C. Delabie, G. B. dos Santos, E. Meurer, and M. I. Marques. 2013. Mini-Winkler Extractor and Pitfall Trap as Complementary Methods to Sample Formicidae. Neotrop Entomol 42: 351358.
- Ulyssea M.A., C. E. Cereto, F. B. Rosumek, R. R. Silva, and B. C. Lopes. 2011. Updated list of ant species (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) recorded in Santa Catarina State, southern Brazil, with a discussion of research advances and priorities. Revista Brasileira de Entomologia 55(4): 603-611.
- Vittar, F. 2008. Hormigas (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) de la Mesopotamia Argentina. INSUGEO Miscelania 17(2):447-466
- Vittar, F., and F. Cuezzo. "Hormigas (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) de la provincia de Santa Fe, Argentina." Revista de la Sociedad Entomológica Argentina (versión On-line ISSN 1851-7471) 67, no. 1-2 (2008).
- Wild, A. L. "A catalogue of the ants of Paraguay (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)." Zootaxa 1622 (2007): 1-55.