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Melissotarsus insularis
| Melissotarsus insularis | |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Hymenoptera |
| Family: | Formicidae |
| Subfamily: | Myrmicinae |
| Tribe: | Crematogastrini |
| Genus: | Melissotarsus |
| Species: | M. insularis |
| Binomial name | |
| Melissotarsus insularis Santschi, 1911
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Identification
Distribution
Latitudinal Distribution Pattern
Latitudinal Range: -17.8873° to -25.04025°.
| North Temperate |
North Subtropical |
Tropical | South Subtropical |
South Temperate |
- Source: AntMaps
Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists
Afrotropical Region: Comoros.
Malagasy Region: Madagascar (type locality), Mayotte.
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. |
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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
Garcia, Wiesel and Fischer (2013) - The four species of this Afrotropical and Malagasy genus are rarely encountered. The Afrotropical species were revised by Bolton (1982) who also provided a good species identification key. These ants are special in several ways. They build their nests in healthy wood by tunnelling through the living tissue beneath the surface (Bolton, 1982; Fisher & Robertson, 1999; Belshaw & Bolton, 1994) and are rarely found outside of their nests, which could be the main reason for their relative scarcity in museum collections (Bolton, 1982). They live in close association with symbiotic coccids that are kept inside the nest. Adults are able to produce silk, which is used to close exit holes or to seal cracks (Fisher & Robertson, 1999).
Bolton (1982) - This small genus, of which only four uncommon species are presently recognized, is restricted to the Malagasy region (1 species) where it is rare, and the Afrotropical region (3 species) where it is, however, very widespread. The species nest in the healthy wood of living trees, apparently tunnelling their own galleries below the surface. For this reason most collections of Melissotarsus are made more by luck than by intent as their presence in the wood is usually not detectable on the surface. Delage-Darchen (1972) has shown that the method of walking in these ants is very strange; they progress on their front and hind legs with the middle pair projecting upwards, and presumably in contact with the gallery roof. She also noted the presence of coccids inside the galleries, also discussed by Ben-Dov (1978). It seems probable that coccid secretions form a major, if not the main, item in the diet of Melissotarsus species.
Castes
Images from AntWeb
  
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| Syntype of Melissotarsus insularis. Worker. Specimen code casent0101094. Photographer April Nobile, uploaded by California Academy of Sciences. | Owned by NHMB, Basel, Switzerland. |
   
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| Syntype of Melissotarsus insularis. Worker. Specimen code casent0101466. Photographer April Nobile, uploaded by California Academy of Sciences. | Owned by MNHN, Paris, France. |
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| Specimen code casent0107656. . | |
  
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| Queen (alate/dealate). Specimen code casent0125648. Photographer Erin Prado, uploaded by California Academy of Sciences. | Owned by CAS, San Francisco, CA, USA. |
   
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| Queen (alate/dealate). Specimen code casent0125650. Photographer Erin Prado, uploaded by California Academy of Sciences. | Owned by CAS, San Francisco, CA, USA. |
   
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| Worker. Specimen code casent0125657. Photographer Erin Prado, uploaded by California Academy of Sciences. | Owned by CAS, San Francisco, CA, USA. |
    
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| Male (alate). Specimen code casent0132274. Photographer Erin Prado, uploaded by California Academy of Sciences. | Owned by CAS, San Francisco, CA, USA. |
   
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| Queen (alate/dealate). Specimen code casent0422973. Photographer April Nobile, uploaded by California Academy of Sciences. | Owned by CAS, San Francisco, CA, USA. |
   
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| Worker. Specimen code casent0426119. Photographer April Nobile, uploaded by California Academy of Sciences. | Owned by CAS, San Francisco, CA, USA. |
   
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| Worker. Specimen code casent0498665. Photographer April Nobile, uploaded by California Academy of Sciences. | Owned by CAS, San Francisco, CA, USA. |
Nomenclature
The following information is derived from Barry Bolton's Online Catalogue of the Ants of the World.
- insularis. Melissotarsus insularis Santschi, 1911e: 122, fig. 2 (w.m.) MADAGASCAR.
- Type-material: 2 syntype workers, 1 syntype male (“in very poor condition”).
- Type-locality: Madagascar: Makaraingo, 1898 (Escoffre).
- Type-depository: MNHN.
- Status as species: Emery, 1922e: 119; Wheeler, W.M. 1922a: 1021; Bolton, 1995b: 250.
- Distribution: Madagascar.
Description
References
- Aléné, D.C., Djiéto-Lordon, C., Burckhardt, D. 2011. Unusual behaviour — unusual morphology: Mutualistic relationships between ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) and Diaphorina enderleini (Hemiptera: Psylloidea), associated with Vernonia amygdalina (Asteraceae). African Invertebrates 52, 353–361 (doi:10.5733/afin.052.0210).
- Ben-Dov, Y. 2010. On new taxa and some described armoured scale insects (Hemiptera: Diaspididae) living in the galleries of the ant Melissotarsus insularis Santschi (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in Madagascar. Zootaxa 2368:49–58 (Melissoaspis fisheri n. sp. and Melissoaspis reticulata n. sp.)
- Cantone S. 2018. Winged Ants, The queen. Dichotomous key to genera of winged female ants in the World. The Wings of Ants: morphological and systematic relationships (self-published).
- Santschi, F. 1911e. Nouvelles fourmis de Madagascar. Rev. Suisse Zool. 19: 117-134 (page 122, fig. 2 worker, male described)
- Wheeler, W. M. 1922k. Ants of the American Museum Congo expedition. A contribution to the myrmecology of Africa. IX. A synonymic list of the ants of the Malagasy region. Bull. Am. Mus. Nat. Hist. 4 45: 1005-1055 (see also)
References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics
- Delage-Darchen B. 1972. Une fourmi de Côte d'Ivoire: Melissotarsus titubans Del., n. sp. Insectes Sociaux 19: 213-226.
- Fisher B. L. 1997. Biogeography and ecology of the ant fauna of Madagascar (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Journal of Natural History 31: 269-302.
- Fisher B. L. 2003. Formicidae, ants. Pp. 811-819 in: Goodman, S. M.; Benstead, J. P. (eds.) 2003. The natural history of Madagascar. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, xxi + 1709 pp.
- Ravelomanana A., and B. L. Fisher. 2013. Diversity of ants in burned and unburned grassland , and dry deciduous forest in the Beanka Reserve, Melaky Region, western Madagascar. Malagasy Nature 7: 171-183.