Dominican Amber

Dominican Amber
Age (Ma)
Start:	26
End:	15
System/Period:	Neogene
Series/Epoch:	Miocene
Stage/Age:	Burdigalian
Location
Country:	Dominican Republic
Coordinates:	19.6°N, 70.8°W
Diversity
Genera:	34
Species:	86

• 

  Acanthostichus hispaniolicus from Santiago, Dominican Republic

• 

  Azteca alpha from Dominican Republic

List of Ants from Dominican Amber (Miocene, 16-19 mya; Seyfullah et al., 2018). Dominican amber differentiates itself from Baltic amber by being mostly transparent and often containing a higher number of fossil inclusions. This has enabled the detailed reconstruction of the ecosystem of a long-vanished tropical forest. Resin from the extinct species Hymenaea protera is the source of Dominican amber and probably of most amber found in the tropics. It is not "succinite" but "retinite".

Note that an undescribed species of Linepithema from Dominican amber is mentioned by Poinar et al. (2006).

Genera known from Dominican amber

• Acanthognathus
• Acanthostichus
• Acropyga
• Anochetus
• Aphaenogaster
• Apterostigma
• Azteca
• Cephalotes
• Cylindromyrmex
• Cyphomyrmex
• Discothyrea
• Dolichoderus
• Gnamptogenys
• Gracilidris
• Hypoponera
• Ilemomyrmex
• Leptomyrmex
• Monomorium
• Mycetomoellerius
• Neivamyrmex
• Nesomyrmex
• Nylanderia
• Odontomachus
• Oxyidris
• Paraponera
• Pheidole
• Platythyrea
• Proceratium
• Pseudomyrmex
• Strumigenys
• Tapinoma
• Technomyrmex
• Temnothorax
• Zatania

Species known from Dominican amber

• Acanthognathus poinari
• Acanthostichus hispaniolicus
• Acropyga glaesaria
• Anochetus ambiguus
• Anochetus brevidentatus
• Anochetus conisquamis
• Anochetus corayi
• Anochetus dubius
• Anochetus exstinctus
• Anochetus intermedius
• Anochetus lucidus
• Aphaenogaster amphioceanica
• Apterostigma electropilosum
• Apterostigma eowilsoni
• Azteca alpha
• Azteca eumeces
• Cephalotes alveolatus
• Cephalotes bloosi
• Cephalotes brevispineus
• Cephalotes caribicus
• Cephalotes dieteri
• Cephalotes hispaniolicus
• Cephalotes integerrimus
• Cephalotes jansei
• Cephalotes obscurus
• Cephalotes serratus
• Cephalotes squamosus
• Cephalotes sucinus
• Cylindromyrmex antillanus
• Cylindromyrmex electrinus
• Cylindromyrmex inopinatus
• Cyphomyrmex taino
• Discothyrea gigas
• Dolichoderus caribbaeus
• Dolichoderus dibolius
• Dolichoderus intermedius
• Dolichoderus primitivus
• Dolichoderus prolaminatus
• Gnamptogenys casca
• Gnamptogenys levinates
• Gnamptogenys pristina
• Gracilidris humiloides
• Ilemomyrmex caecus
• Leptomyrmex neotropicus
• Mycetomoellerius primaevus
• Neivamyrmex ectopus
• Neoponera vejestoria
• Nesomyrmex caritatis
• Nesomyrmex dominicanus
• Nylanderia vetula
• Odontomachus pseudobauri
• Odontomachus spinifer
• Oxyidris antillana
• Paraponera dieteri
• Pheidole anticua
• Pheidole primigenia
• Pheidole tethepa
• Platythyrea dentata
• Platythyrea procera
• Platythyrea pumilio
• Platythyrea scalpra
• Poneracantha brunoi
• Proceratium denticulatum
• Proceratium dominicanum
• Proceratium gibberum
• Proceratium poinari
• Pseudomyrmex antiquus
• Pseudomyrmex avitus
• Pseudomyrmex baros
• Pseudomyrmex coruscus
• Pseudomyrmex macrops
• Pseudomyrmex nexilis
• Pseudomyrmex oryctus
• Pseudomyrmex prioris
• Pseudomyrmex succinus
• Pseudomyrmex thecolor
• Pseudomyrmex vicinus
• Strumigenys electrina
• Strumigenys pilosula
• Strumigenys poinari
• Strumigenys schleeorum
• Tapinoma troche
• Technomyrmex caritatis
• Technomyrmex hispaniolae
• Temnothorax praecreolus
• Zatania electra

Location of Formation

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References

• Arillo, A., Ortuno, V.M. 2005. Catalogue of fossil insect species described from Dominican amber (Miocene). Stuttgarter Beiträge zur Naturkunde, Serie B (Geologie und Paläontologie) 352: 1-68.
• Chen, A. 2019. A taxonomic morphometric analyses between extinct Dominican amber fossilized Formicidae. The Columbia Junior Science Journal 2019, 7-8.
• [1] Lattke, J. E. 1991b [1990]. The genus Proceratium Roger in Dominican amber (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Caribb. J. Sci. 26: 101-103
• Lattke, J. E. 2003a. The genus Platythyrea Roger, 1863 in Dominican amber (Hymenoptera: Formicidae: Ponerinae). Entomotropica 18: 107-111.
• Poinar, G., Lachaud, J.P., Castillo, A., Infante, F. 2006. Recent and fossil nematode parasites (Nematoda: Mermithidae) of Neotropical ants. Journal of Invertebrate Pathology 91, 19–26.
• Seyfullah, L.J., Beimforde, C., Dal Corso, J., Perrichot, V., Rikkinen, J., Schmidt, A.R. 2018. Production and preservation of resins – past and present. Biological Reviews 93: 1684–1714 (DOI 10.1111/brv.12414).
• [2] Ward, P. S. 1992. Ants of the genus Pseudomyrmex (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) from Dominican amber, with a synopsis of the extant Antillean species. Psyche (Camb.) 99: 55-85
• [3] Wilson, E. O. 1985a. Ants of the Dominican amber (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). 1. Two new myrmicine genera and an aberrant Pheidole. Psyche (Camb.) 92: 1-9
• [4] Wilson, E. O. 1985b. Ants of the Dominican amber (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). 2. The first fossil army ants. Psyche (Camb.) 92: 11-16
• [5] Wilson, E. O. 1985c. Ants of the Dominican amber (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). 3. The subfamily Dolichoderinae. Psyche (Camb.) 92: 17-37