Myrmelachista arthuri

This species nests in wood or stems of live or dead, standing plants.

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists
Neotropical Region: Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay.

Biology
Castro et al (2017) studied the nesting and foraging biology of this species in a block of Brazilian Atlantic Forest. They found M. arthuri nests in wood or stems of live or dead, standing plants. It does not create satellite nests in twigs on the ground, as has been observed in some other Myrmelachista species. Workers are visible and active on the stems of plants, using established foraging trails throughout the day. They forage in the leaf litter and arborearly. Activity tended to be more intense during the warmer parts of the day, a pattern that was more pronounced during the cold/dry season. Warm/wet season foraging, less intense despite alate production during that time, likely results in more efficient foraging due to higher food availability. Seasonal shifts in diet, i.e., the quantity and identity of food items, was evident through examining laden foragers. Overall, M. arthuri is a generalist. It collects all kinds of insects and feeds on plant exudates as well. One unexpected finding was the high abundance of springtails collected.

Nomenclature

 *  arthuri. Myrmelachista arthuri Forel, 1903c: 263 (diagnosis in key) (w.) BRAZIL. Combination in M. (Decamera): Emery, 1925b: 33; in M. (Hincksidris): Kempf, 1972a: 148. Senior synonym of ute: Kempf, 1978: 36. Current subspecies: nominal plus brunneiceps.
 * ute. Myrmelachista ute Kusnezov, 1969: 34 (w.) ARGENTINA. Junior synonym of arthuri: Kempf, 1978: 36.

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

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 * Calixto J. M. 2013. Lista preliminar das especies de formigas (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) do estado do Parana, Brasil. Universidad Federal do Parana 34 pages.
 * 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.
 * Forel A. 1908. Ameisen aus Sao Paulo (Brasilien), Paraguay etc. gesammelt von Prof. Herm. v. Ihering, Dr. Lutz, Dr. Fiebrig, etc. Verhandlungen der Kaiserlich-Königlichen Zoologisch-Botanischen Gesellschaft in Wien 58: 340-418.
 * Kempf W. W. 1978. Five new synonyms for the Argentine ant fauna (Hymenoptera, Formicidae). 112. Studia Entomologica 20: 35-38.
 * Kempf, W.W. 1972. Catalago abreviado das formigas da regiao Neotropical (Hym. Formicidae) Studia Entomologica 15(1-4).
 * Kusnezov N. 1969. Nuevas especies de hormigas. Acta Zoologica Lilloana 24: 33-38.
 * Kusnezov N. 1978. Hormigas argentinas: clave para su identificación. Miscelánea. Instituto Miguel Lillo 61:1-147 + 28 pl.
 * Luederwaldt H. 1918. Notas myrmecologicas. Rev. Mus. Paul. 10: 29-64.
 * Nakano M. A., V. F. Oliveira de Miranda, D. Rodrigues de Souza, R. M. Feitosa, and M. S. C. Morini. 2013. Occurrence and natural history of Myrmelachista Roger (Formicidae: Formicinae) in the Atlantic Forest of southeastern Brazil. Revista Chilena de Historia Natural 86: 169-179.
 * Suguituru S. S., D. R. de Souza, C. de Bortoli Munhae, R. Pacheco, and M. S. de Castro Morini. 2011. Diversidade e riqueza de formigas (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) em remanescentes de Mata Atlântica na Bacia Hidrográfica do Alto Tietê, SP. Biota Neotrop. 13(2): 141-152.
 * Suguituru S. S., M. Santina de Castro Morini, R. M. Feitosa, and R. Rosa da Silva. 2015. Formigas do Alto Tiete. Canal 6 Editora 458 pages
 * Vittar, F. 2008. Hormigas (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) de la Mesopotamia Argentina. INSUGEO Miscelania 17(2):447-466
 * Wild, A. L. "A catalogue of the ants of Paraguay (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)." Zootaxa 1622 (2007): 1-55.