Odontomachus ruginodis

A fairly widespread species that occurs from Florida (where it might be introduced) south through the Caribbean and into northern South America. It is ground-nesting and found in both disturbed and natural habitats.

Identification
Deyrup and Trager (1985) - Worker: gastral hairs, pronotal striation, inner side of hind femur approximately as in Odontomachus clarus; petiole conspicuously transversely striate on sides and back; color reddish brown to piceous gaster black. Male: each ocellus less than two-thirds as wide as ocello-ocular space, ocelli not on a turret; petiole strongly rugose laterally; propodeum and lateral pronotal spot black, remainder of thorax and head yellow, gaster brown.

The conspicuous striae on the posterior face of the petiole distinguish workers of this species from the similar Odontomachus clarus and Odontomachus relictus, but there are additional species with petiolar striae (e.g., Odontomachus bauri Emery) outside the U.S (Deyrup and Cover 2004).

Identification Keys including this Taxon

 * Key to US Odontomachus species

Distribution
This species occurs sporadically through southern and central Florida, at least as far north as Orlando, and also in the West Indies. Its distribution in South and Central America is unclear because it has been confused with Odontomachus brunneus. Its ability to thrive in disturbed habitats should allow it to invade mainland Neotropical areas, if it is not already present. It is probable that this species will be distributed by commerce to disturbed areas in the Southwest. (Deyrup and Cover 2004)

In the United States, Deyrup (1991) speculated that this was introduced into Florida as it was patchily distributed and had a predilection for disturbed habitats. However, MacGown et al. (2014) stated that the status of Odontomachus ruginodis as an exotic species is unclear. The Florida populations may be recent arrivals from Antillean populations, as evidenced by the frequent collection in disturbed areas, such as near homes, rather than in natural habitats. Indeed, Puerto Rican populations of O. ruginodis show a preference for forests that are at least 25 years old (Osorio-Pérez et al. 2007), and males of Nearctic O. ruginodis more-closely resemble those of the Antilles rather than of the mainland Neotropics. During the past 20 years, this species appears to have been steadily expanding its range northward in Florida.

MacGown et al. (2014) - The status of Odontomachus ruginodis as an exotic species in Florida is unclear. This population may be a recent arrival from Antillean populations, as evidenced by the frequent collection in disturbed areas, such as near homes, rather than in natural habitats. Indeed, Puerto Rican populations of O. ruginodis show a preference for forests that are at least 25 years old (Osorio-Pérez et al. 2007), and males of Nearctic O. ruginodis more-closely resemble those of the Antilles rather than of the mainland Neotropics. During the past 20 years, this species appears to have been steadily expanding its range northward in Florida

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists
Nearctic Region: United States. Neotropical Region: Bahamas, Barbados, Bermuda, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Galapagos Islands, Greater Antilles, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico, Netherlands Antilles, Panama, Puerto Rico.

Biology
Deyrup & Cover (2004); Deyrup, Davis & Cover (2000) - In Florida, this species occurs in disturbed areas, including urban and suburban habitats and in both wet and dry areas. It occurs along the beaches in the tropical part of the state, as well as in open woods, including mangrove areas. It has not yet been found inland in natural habitats. In Puerto Rico it differs from another sympatric species (perhaps Odontomachus bauri) in its preference for open, sunny areas, especially river bottoms (see below).

Gibson et al. (2018) found the trap-jaws of Anochetus targionii and Anochetus paripungens have mandible strikes that overall closely outperform but closely resemble those found in Odontomachus ruginodis.

The defensive mandible-snapping behavior of ruginodis was studied by Carlin and Gladstein (1989). When a nest is attacked by other ants, the ruginodis workers rush out, snapping at anything that seems a threat. Enemy ants may be dismembered or knocked out of the way by the mandibular strikes. If the mandibles hit a solid object, the ruginodis may itself be flung into the air for a distance of several centimeters. This does not seem to be an escape mechanism, as the worker, upon landing, immediately charges back into the fray. The nest entrance is usually guarded by a single worker, who stands with cocked mandibles near the entrance. If an intruder approaches within striking distance, the mandibles snap shut, responding to signals from the antennae and long sensory hairs at the bases of the mandibles. The heavy apices of the mandibles do not slice into the intruder, but knock it away a distance of about one to fourteen centimeters. Carlin and Gladstein call this the “bouncer defense.”

Males have been collected from early May through June (MacGown et al., 2014).

Puerto Rico
Wheeler (1908): ...found only in open, sunny places in the sandy soil of river bottoms. It is smaller than ..Odontomachus haematodus.., has a paler head, and the petiole is less acuminate above, with a shorter spine.

Nomenclature

 * . Odontomachus haematodes var. ruginodis Wheeler, W.M. 1908a: 126.
 * Type-material: syntype workers (number not stated).
 * Type-localities: Bahamas: New Providence I., Nassau (Queen’s Staircase and Fort Charlotte), and Hog I., v.-vi.1904 (W.M. Wheeler), and Cuba: Havana (C.F. Baker).
 * Type-depositories: AMNH, MCZC.
 * [First available use of Odontomachus haematodes subsp. insularis var. ruginodis Wheeler, W.M. 1905b: 82, 122 (w.q.) BAHAMAS (New Providence I.), CUBA; unavailable (infrasubspecific) name.]
 * Deyrup, Trager & Carlin, 1985: 192 (m.).
 * As unavailable (infrasubspecific) name: Emery, 1911d: 115; Forel, 1912c: 28 (in text); Wheeler, W.M. 1913b: 483; Wheeler, W.M. 1913d: 240; Wheeler, W.M. 1917g: 458; Mann, 1920: 404; Kempf, 1972a: 171.
 * Subspecies of haematodus: Forel, 1912c: 28; Smith. M.R. 1937: 828.
 * Junior synonym of brunneus: Brown, 1976a: 103.
 * Status as species: Wilson, 1964b: 4; Deyrup, Trager & Carlin, 1985: 192; Deyrup & Trager, 1986: 214; Deyrup, et al. 1989: 94; Brandão, 1991: 363; Bolton, 1995b: 297; Deyrup, et al. 2000: 295; Deyrup, 2003: 45; Deyrup & Cover, 2004b: 141 (in key); Wetterer & Wetterer, 2004: 215; MacGown & Forster, 2005: 67; Rodriguez, J. 2008: 168; Branstetter & Sáenz, 2012: 262; MacGown, et al. 2014: 543 (redescription); Bezděčková, et al. 2015: 124; Wetterer, et al. 2016: 14; Deyrup, 2017: 30; Fernández & Guerrero, 2019: 539; Lubertazzi, 2019: 139.
 * Distribution: Bahamas, Barbados, Colombia(?), Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Haiti, U.S.A.

Description
To this variety I assign a small form of O. haematodes, which in color and pilosity resembles specimens of insularis taken in Florida (Lake Worth, Enterprise, Biscayne Bay, etc.). In the worker the head, antennae, and legs are dark red, the thorax nearly black. The upper surface of the head and thorax is opaque and strongly sculptured. The petiole, which is sharply and transversely rugose on its anterior and posterior surfaces, is narrow, decidedly convex behind, with rounded sides, and passes rather gradually into the spine.

This variety was taken only on New Providence Island at Nassau (Queen's Staircase and Fort Charlotte) and a neighboring key, Hog Island. Specimens of the very same form have been sent to me from Havana, Cuba, by Mr. C. F. Baker. Florida specimens of insularis, like those of the next variety to be described, have only faint traces of the transverse rugae on the petiole.

In Nassau I found the variety ruginodis nesting under stones in small colonies of often not more than a dozen individuals. In the moat of old Fort Charlotte several isolated females were seen starting their colonies. In this phase the petiole is much broader and much more rugose than in the worker.

Worker Morphology
=

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

 * Adams B. J., S. A. Schnitzer, and S. P. Yanoviak. 2016. Trees as islands: canopy ant species richness increases with the size of liana-free trees in a Neotropical forest. Ecography doi: 10.1111/ecog.02608
 * Adams B. J., S. A. Schnitzer, and S. P. Yanoviak. 2019. Connectivity explains local ant community structure in a Neotropical forest canopy: a large-scale experimental approach. Ecology 100(6): e02673.
 * Barberena-Arias M. F., and T. M. Aide. 2003. Species Diversity and Trophic Composition of Litter Insects During Plant Secondary Succession. Caribbean Journal of Science 39(2): 161-169.
 * Boer P. 2019. Ants of Saba, species list. Accessed on January 22 2019 at http://www.nlmieren.nl/websitepages/SPECIES%20LIST%20SABA.html
 * Brandao, C.R.F. 1991. Adendos ao catalogo abreviado das formigas da regiao neotropical (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Rev. Bras. Entomol. 35: 319-412.
 * Branstetter M. G. and L. Sáenz. 2012. Las hormigas (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) de Guatemala. Pp. 221-268 in: Cano E. B. and J. C. Schuster. (eds.) 2012. Biodiversidad de Guatemala. Volumen 2. Guatemala: Universidad del Valle de Guatemala, iv + 328 pp
 * Brown W. L., Jr. 1976. Contributions toward a reclassification of the Formicidae. Part VI. Ponerinae, tribe Ponerini, subtribe Odontomachiti. Section A. Introduction, subtribal characters. Genus Odontomachus. Stud. Entomol. 19: 67-171.
 * Castano-Meneses, G., M. Vasquez-Bolanos, J. L. Navarrete-Heredia, G. A. Quiroz-Rocha, and I. Alcala-Martinez. 2015. Avances de Formicidae de Mexico. Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico.
 * Dattilo W. et al. 2019. MEXICO ANTS: incidence and abundance along the Nearctic-Neotropical interface. Ecology https://doi.org/10.1002/ecy.2944
 * Deyrup M. and Cover S. 2004. A new species of Odontomachus ant (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) from inland ridges of Florida, with a key to Odontomachus of the United States. Florida Entomologist 87: 136-144
 * Deyrup M., L. Davis, and S. Buckner. 1998. Composition of the ant fauna of three Bahamian islands. Proceedings of the seventh symposium on the natural history of the Bahamas. 23-32. Bahamian Field Station, San Salvador, Bahamas
 * Deyrup, M. and S. Cover. 2004. A new species of Odontomachus ant (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) from inland ridges of Florida, with a key to Odontomachus of the United States. Florida Entomologist 87(2):136-144
 * Emery C. 1911. Hymenoptera. Fam. Formicidae. Subfam. Ponerinae. Genera Insectorum 118: 1-125.
 * Fernandes, P.R. XXXX. Los hormigas del suelo en Mexico: Diversidad, distribucion e importancia (Hymenoptera: Formicidae).
 * Fernández F., E. E. Palacio, W. P. Mackay, and E. S. MacKay. 1996. Introducción al estudio de las hormigas (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) de Colombia. Pp. 349-412 in: Andrade M. G., G. Amat García, and F. Fernández. (eds.) 1996. Insectos de Colombia. Estudios escogidos. Bogotá: Academia Colombiana de Ciencias Exactas, Físicas y Naturales, 541 pp
 * Fernández F., and E. E. Palacio. 1995. Hormigas de Colombia IV: nuevos registros de géneros y especies. Caldasia 17: 587-596.
 * Fernández F., and T. M. Arias-Penna. 2008. Las hormigas cazadoras en la región Neotropical. Pp. 3-39 in: Jiménez, E.; Fernández, F.; Arias, T.M.; Lozano-Zambrano, F. H. (eds.) 2008. Sistemática, biogeografía y conservación de las hormigas cazadoras de Colombia. Bogotá: Instituto de Investigación de Recursos Biológicos Alexander von Humboldt, xiv + 609 pp.
 * Fernández, F. and S. Sendoya. 2004. Lista de las hormigas neotropicales. Biota Colombiana Volume 5, Number 1.
 * Fontanla Rizo J.L. 1997. Lista preliminar de las hormigas de Cuba. Cocuyo 6: 18-21.
 * Fontenla J. L. 2005. Species of ants (Formicidae) recorded during the rapid biological inventory of the Zapata Peninsula, 8-15 September 2002. In: Kirkconnell P., A., D. F. Stotz, y / and J. M. Shopland, eds. 2005. Cuba: Península de Zapata. Rapid Biological Inventories Report 07. The Field Museum, Chicago
 * Fontenla J. L. 2005. Species of ants (Formicidae) recorded in the Sierra de Cubitas and adjacent areas, Camagüey Province, 16-19 September 2002. In: Díaz, L., M., W. S. Alverson, A. Barreto V., y / and T. Wachter. 2006. Cuba: Camagüey, Sierra de Cubitas. Rapid Biological Inventories Report 08. The Field Museum, Chicago
 * Fontenla J. L., and J. Alfonso-Simonetti. 2018. Classification of Cuban ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) into functional groups. Poeyana Revista Cubana de Zoologia 506: 21-30.
 * Fontenla Rizo J. L. 1993. Composición y estructura de comunidades de hormigas en un sistema de formaciones vegetales costeras. Poeyana. Instituto de Ecología y Sistemática, Academia de Ciencias de Cuba 441: 1-19.
 * Fontenla Rizo J. L. 1993. Mirmecofauna de Isla de la Juventud y de algunos cayos del archipielago cubano. Poeyana. Instituto de Ecologia y Sistematica, Academia de Ciencias de Cuba 444:1-7.
 * Fontenla Rizo J. L. 1997. Lista preliminar de las hormigas de Cuba (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Cocuyo 6: 18-21.
 * Fontenla Rizo J. L., and L. M. Hernández. 1993. Relaciones de coexistencia en comunidades de hormigas en un agroecosistema de caña de azúcar. Poeyana. Instituto de Ecología y Sistemática, Academia de Ciencias de Cuba 438: 1-16.
 * Galkowski C. 2016. New data on the ants from the Guadeloupe (Hymenoptera, Formicidae). Bull. Soc. Linn. Bordeaux 151, 44(1): 25-36.
 * Garcia M. A. The vulnerability of leaflitter ants to forest disturbances in the islands of Puerto Rico, Greater Antilles. Novitates Caribaea 13: 74-91.
 * Kempf, W.W. 1972. Catalago abreviado das formigas da regiao Neotropical (Hym. Formicidae) Studia Entomologica 15(1-4).
 * Longino J. T. L., and M. G. Branstetter. 2018. The truncated bell: an enigmatic but pervasive elevational diversity pattern in Middle American ants. Ecography 41: 1-12.
 * Longino J. et al. ADMAC project. Accessed on March 24th 2017 at https://sites.google.com/site/admacsite/
 * Lozano-Zambrano F. H., E. Jimenez, T. M. Arias-Penna, A. M. Arcila, J. Rodriguez, and D. P. Ramirez. 2008. Biogeografía de las hormigas cazadoras de Colombia. Pp. 349-406. in: Jiménez, E.; Fernández, F.; Arias, T.M.; Lozano-Zambrano, F. H. (eds.) 2008. Sistemática, biogeografía y conservación de las hormigas cazadoras de Colombia. Bogotá: Instituto de Investigación de Recursos Biológicos Alexander von Humboldt, xiv + 609 pp.
 * Mann W. M. 1920. Additions to the ant fauna of the West Indies and Central America. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 42: 403-439.
 * Morrison L. W. 1998. A review of Bahamian ant (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) biogeography. Journal of Biogeography 25: 561-571.
 * Osorio-Perez K., M. F. Barberena-Arias, and T. M. Aide. 2007. Changes in Ant Species Richness and Composition During Plant Secondary Succession in Puerto Rico. Caribbean Journal of Science 43(2): 244-253.
 * Peck S. B. 1974. The Invertebrate Fauna of Tropical American Caves, Part II: Puerto Rico, An Ecological and Zoogeographic Analysis. Biotropica 6(1): 14-31.
 * Philpott, S.M., P. Bichier, R. Rice, and R. Greenberg. 2007. Field testing ecological and economic benefits of coffee certification programs. Conservation Biology 21: 975-985.
 * Portuondo E. F., and J. L. Reyes. 2002. Mirmecofauna de los macizos montañosos de Sierra Maestra y Nipe-Sagua-Baracoa. Cocuyo 12: 10-13
 * Portuondo Ferrer, E. and J. Fernandez Triana. Biodiversidad del orden Hymenoptera en Los Macizos Montanosos de Cuba Oriental. Boletin S.E.A. 35:121-136.
 * Reddell J. R., and J. C. Cokendolpher. 2001. Ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) from caves of Belize, Mexico, and California and Texas (U.S.A.) Texas. Texas Memorial Museum Speleological Monographs 5: 129-154.
 * Reynoso-Campos J. J., J. A. Rodriguez-Garza, and M. Vasquez-Bolanos. 2015. Hormigas (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) de la Isla Cozumel, Quintana Roo, Mexico (pp. 27-39). En: Castaño Meneses G., M. Vásquez-Bolaños, J. L. Navarrete-Heredia, G. A. Quiroz-Rocha e I. Alcalá-Martínez (Coords.). Avances de Formicidae de  México.  UNAM,  Universiad  de  Guadalajara, Guadalajara, Jalisco.
 * Smith M. R. 1937. The ants of Puerto Rico. Journal of Agriculture of the University of Puerto Rico 20: 819-875.
 * Solomon, S.E. and A.S. Mikheyev. 2005. The ant (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) fauna of Cocos Island, Costa Rica. Florida Entomologist 88(4):415-423
 * Vásquez-Bolaños M. 2011. Lista de especies de hormigas (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) para México. Dugesiana 18: 95-133
 * Wheeler W. M. 1905. The ants of the Bahamas, with a list of the known West Indian species. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 21: 79-135.
 * Wheeler W. M. 1908. The ants of Porto Rico and the Virgin Islands. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 24: 117-158.
 * Wheeler W. M. 1913. The ants of Cuba. Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoology 54: 477-505.
 * Wheeler W. M. 1917. Jamaican ants collected by Prof. C. T. Brues. Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoology 61: 457-471.
 * Yanoviak S. P., S, M. Berghoff, K. E. Linsenmair, and G. Zotz. 2011. Effects of an Epiphytic Orchid on Arboreal Ant Community Structure in Panama. Biotropica 43(6): 731-737.