Amblyopone

Species of Amblyopone range from very rare and seldom seen to locally common and regularly encountered. They nest in soil under rocks or logs or in rotten wood on the ground. Colonies often lack central chambers and instead are composed of many small satellite nests each containing a few workers together with a small amount of brood, dispersed over a small area. Workers are cryptic predators in soil and leaf litter and are seldom seen foraging on the surface of the ground. Some species show a strong preference for centipedes while others will feed on a range of soft-bodied arthropods. When disturbed they move slowly underground or remain motionless. In some species queens are known to wound their larvae and feed on haemolymph taken from these non-lethal wounds.



Worker of A. australis from New South Wales.



Worker of A. saundersi from New Zealand.

Identification
The mandibles are long and slender, with at least 5 teeth which vary greatly in size and are scattered along the entire inner margins, and with a sharp, pointed tooth at their tips which is no more than twice as long as the next longest tooth. The frontal lobes extend only slightly forward of the antennal sockets and do not cover the clypeus when viewed from the front. The forward margin of the clypeus is usually armed with a number of small teeth. The petiole has distinct front and upper faces but lacks a rear face, and its attachment to the gaster is broad and approximately the same height as the petiole so that the upper surfaces of petiole and gaster are separated by at most a shallow impression. The tibiae of the hind legs each have a large, comb-like (pectinate) spur at their tips (best viewed from the front).

Species of Amblyopone are most similar to those of Onychomyrmex, but differ in having the tooth at the tip of the mandible smaller and having a distinct comb-like spur on the hind tibia.

Distribution and Habitats
Australian distribution

Regional Species Lists

 * Australia

Keys to Species

 * Australia