Harpegnathos venator

Harpegnathos venator
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Hymenoptera
Family:	Formicidae
Subfamily:	Ponerinae
Tribe:	Ponerini
Genus:	Harpegnathos
Species:	H. venator
Binomial name
Harpegnathos venator (Smith, F., 1858)
Subspecies
Harpegnathos venator chapmani Donisthorpe, 1937 Harpegnathos venator rugosus Mayr, 1862

Harpegnathos venator is rare in Vietnam. It probably occurs in forest edges and relatively sparse forests. We found an undergound nest along a dirt trail in a sparse forest. (Eguchi et al. 2014)

Distribution

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists

Indo-Australian Region: Borneo, Indonesia, Malaysia.
Oriental Region: Bangladesh, India (type locality), Laos, Thailand, Vietnam.
Palaearctic Region: China.

Distribution based on AntMaps

Distribution based on AntWeb specimens

Check data from AntWeb

Biology

Nesting Habits

Nests are complex constructions as in Harpegnathos saltator. In northern Thailand, the entrance is funnel-shaped and raised above the ground (C. Peeters & F. Ito, unpubl.). See Malagidris sofina for comparison

Nest with a single inhabited chamber from northern Thailand. Note the empty space below that may serve to evacuate flood water. Photo by Christian Peeters.

Inhabited chamber with cocoons and scattered eggs. Note the smooth inner walls that are wall-papered with empty cocoons. Photo by Christian Peeters.

Funnel entrance of a nest in an embankment. Photo by Christian Peeters.

Castes

• The following images are provided by Harvard University, Museum of Comparative Zoology
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• The following images are provided by AntWeb
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  Head view

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  Side view

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  Top view

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  Specimen labels

Nomenclature

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

• venator. Drepanognathus venator Smith, F. 1858b: 82 (w.) INDIA. Forel, 1900c: 64 (q.m.). Combination in Harpegnathos: Emery, 1889b: 494. Current subspecies: nominal plus chapmani, rugosus. See also: Bingham, 1903: 51.

The following notes on F. Smith type specimens have been provided by Barry Bolton (details):

Drepanognathus venator

Holotype worker in The Natural History Museum. Labelled “Madras. 50/103.” Acc. Reg.: “1850 no. 103. Madras (French rocks). Presented by Mrs Capt. Hamilton.”

References

• Bingham, C. T. 1903. The fauna of British India, including Ceylon and Burma. Hymenoptera, Vol. II. Ants and Cuckoo-wasps. London: Taylor and Francis, 506 pp. (page 51, see also)
• Eguchi, K., Bui, T.V. and Yamane, S. 2014. Generic Synopsis of the Formicidae of Vietnam (Insecta: Hymenoptera), Part II - Cerapachyinae, Aenictinae, Dorylinae, Leptanillinae, Amblyoponinae, Ponerinae, Ectatomminae and Ponerinae. Zootaxa. 3860:1–46.
• Emery, C. 1889c. Formiche di Birmania e del Tenasserim raccolte da Leonardo Fea (1885-87). [part]. Ann. Mus. Civ. Stor. Nat. 27[=(2)(7): 485-512 (page 494, Combination in Harpegnathos)
• Forel, A. 1900d. Les Formicides de l'Empire des Indes et de Ceylan. Part VI. J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 13: 52-65 (page 64, queen, male described)
• Liu, C., Fischer, G., Hita Garcia, F., Yamane, S., Liu, Q., Peng, Y.Q., Economo, E.P., Guénard, B., Pierce, N.E. 2020. Ants of the Hengduan Mountains: a new altitudinal survey and updated checklist for Yunnan Province highlight an understudied insect biodiversity hotspot. ZooKeys 978, 1–171 (doi:10.3897/zookeys.978.55767).
• Smith, F. 1858a. Catalogue of hymenopterous insects in the collection of the British Museum. Part VI. Formicidae. London: British Museum, 216 pp. (page 82, worker described)

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

• Bharti H., Y. P. Sharma, M. Bharti, and M. Pfeiffer. 2013. Ant species richness, endemicity and functional groups, along an elevational gradient in the Himalayas. Asian Myrmecology 5: 79-101.
• Bharti H., Y. P. Sharma, and A. Kaur. 2009. Seasonal patterns of ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in Punjab Shivalik. Halteres 1(1): 36-47.
• Chantarasawat N., D. Sitthicharoenchai, C. Chaisuekul, and C. Lekprayoon. 2013. Comparison of Ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) Diversity in Dry Dipterocarp and Mixed-Deciduous Forests at Sri Nan National Park, Northern Thailand. Tropical Natural History 13(1): 1-19.
• Chapman, J. W., and Capco, S. R. 1951. Check list of the ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) of Asia. Monogr. Inst. Sci. Technol. Manila 1: 1-327
• Chen Y. Q., Q. Li, Y. L. Chen, Z. X. Lu, X. Y. Zhou. 2011. Ant diversity and bio-indicators in land management of lac insect agroecosystem in Southwestern China. Biodivers. Conserv. 20: 3017-3038.
• Donisthorpe H. 1937. A new species of Harpegnathos Jerd., with some remarks on the genus, and other known species (Hym. Formicidae). Entomologist's Monthly Magazine 73: 196-201.
• Eguchi K., B. T. Viet, and S. Yamane. 2014. Generic Synopsis of the Formicidae of Vietnam (Insecta: Hymenoptera), Part II—Cerapachyinae, Aenictinae, Dorylinae, Leptanillinae, Amblyoponinae, Ponerinae, Ectatomminae and Proceratiinae. Zootaxa 3860: 001-046.
• Emery C. 1911. Hymenoptera. Fam. Formicidae. Subfam. Ponerinae. Genera Insectorum 118: 1-125.
• Forel A. 1900. Les Formicides de l'Empire des Indes et de Ceylan. Part VI. J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 13: 52-65.
• Forel A. 1906. Les fourmis de l'Himalaya. Bulletin de la Société Vaudoise des Sciences Naturelles 42: 79-94.
• Forel A. 1912. Einige neue und interessante Ameisenformen aus Sumatra etc. Zool. Jahrb. Suppl. 15: 51-78.
• Guénard B., and R. R. Dunn. 2012. A checklist of the ants of China. Zootaxa 3558: 1-77.
• Hua Li-zhong. 2006. List of Chinese insects Vol. IV. Pages 262-273. Sun Yat-sen university Press, Guangzhou. 539 pages.
• Huong N. T. T., P. V. Sang, and B. T. Viet. 2015. A preliminary study on diversity of ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) at Hon Ba Nature Reserve. Environmental Scientific Conference 7: 614-620.
• Leong C. M., S. F. Shiao, and B. Guenard. 2017. Ants in the city, a preliminary checklist of Formicidae (Hymenoptera) in Macau, one of the most heavily urbanized regions of the world. Asian Myrmecology 9: e009014.
• Li Z.h. 2006. List of Chinese Insects. Volume 4. Sun Yat-sen University Press
• Lu Z., and Y. Chen. 2016. Effects of habitat on ant functional groups: a case study of Luchun County, Yunnan Province, China. Chinese Journal of Eco-Agriculture 24(5): 801-810.
• Mathew R., and R. N. Tiwari. 2000. Insecta: Hymenoptera: Formicidae. Pp. 251-409 in: Director; Zoological Survey of India (ed.) 2000. Fauna of of Meghalaya. Part 7. [State Fauna Series 4.] Insecta 2000. Calcutta: Zoological Survey of India, 621 pp.
• Mohamed M. 1995. A preliminary list of ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) of the Tawau Hills Park, Sabah. In: Ghazally Ismail et al. (eds.), Tawau Hills Park, Sabah, Pelanduk Pub. Pp. 205-213.
• Pfeiffer M.; Mezger, D.; Hosoishi, S.; Bakhtiar, E. Y.; Kohout, R. J. 2011. The Formicidae of Borneo (Insecta: Hymenoptera): a preliminary species list. Asian Myrmecology 4:9-58
• Sheela S. 2008. Handbook of Hymenoptera, Formicidae. Zoological Survey of India, 56 pages
• Tiwari R. N. 1999. Taxonomic studies on ants of southern India (Insecta: Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Memoirs of the Zoological Survey of India 18(4): 1-96.
• Tiwari, R.N. 1999. Taxonomic studies on ants of southern India (Insecta: Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Memoirs of the Zoological Survey of India 18(4):1-96
• Wheeler W. M. 1930. A list of the known Chinese ants. Peking Natural History Bulletin 5: 53-81.
• Wu B., Y. Lu, G. Liang, and L. Zeng. 2010. Influence of the red inported fire ant, Solenopsis invicta Buren (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) on the diversity of ant communities in a newly infested longan orchard and grass areas nearby. Acta Ecologica Sinica 30(8): 2075-2083.
• Xu Z., Zeng G., Liu T.-Y. and He Y.-F.. 1999. [A study on communities of Formicidae ants in different subtypes of vegetation in Xishuangbanna District of China.] Zoological Research 20: 118-125
• Zhang R. J., L. W. Liang, and S. Y. Zhou. 2014. An analysis on the ant fauna of Nonggang Nature Reserve in Guangxi, China. Journal of Guangxi Normal university: Natural Science Edition 32(3): 86-93.
• Zhou S.-Y. 2001. Ants of Guangxi. Guangxi Normal University Press, Guilin, China, Guilin, China. 255 pp.
• Zryanin V. A. 2011. An eco-faunistic review of ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). In: Structure and functions of soil communities of a monsoon tropical forest (Cat Tien National Park, southern Vietnam) / A.V. Tiunov (Editor). – M.: KMK Scientific Press. 2011. 277 р.101-124.