Messor lusitanicus

This ant is preyed upon by numerous spider species in the genus Zodarion (Araneae: Zodariidae). All members of this genus are specialized ant predators that exclusively prey on ants. (Pekár et al. 2018)

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists
Palaearctic Region: Gibraltar, Iberian Peninsula, Portugal, Spain.

Nomenclature

 * . Messor lusitanicus Tinaut, 1985: 85.
 * Type-material: holotype worker.
 * Type-locality: Portugal: (no further data).
 * Type-depository: BMNH.
 * [First available use of Messor structor st. hispanicus var. lusitanicus Santschi, 1929e: 144 (w.q.m.) PORTUGAL; unavailable (infrasubspecific) name. Material referred to hispanicus by Collingwood, 1978: 68.]
 * Status as species: Bolton, 1995b: 255; Collingwood & Prince, 1998: 14 (in key); Cagniant, 2006a: 197; Borowiec, L. 2014: 108; Lebas, et al. 2016: 292; Barech, et al. 2020: 16.
 * Distribution: Gibraltar, Morocco, Portugal, Spain.

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

 * Asociacion Iberica de Mirmecologia. 2013. List of species collected during the Taxomara 2013. Iberomyrmex 4: 35-36.
 * Borowiec L. 2014. Catalogue of ants of Europe, the Mediterranean Basin and adjacent regions (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Genus (Wroclaw) 25(1-2): 1-340.
 * Borowiec L., and S. Salata. 2017. New records of ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) from southern Portugal. Acta Entomologica Silesiana 25(3): 1-10.
 * Collingwood C., and A. Prince. 1998. A guide to ants of continental Portugal (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Boletim da Sociedade Portuguesa de Entomologia. Suplemento 5: 1-49.
 * Luque-García, G., J. L. Reyes-López, and J. Fernández-Haeger. "Estudio faunístico de las hormigas (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) de la cuenca del río Guadiamar: Primeras aportaciones." Boletín de la Sociedad Entomológica Aragonesa 30 (2002): 153-159.
 * Retana J., and X. Cerdá X. 2000. Patterns of diversity and composition of Mediterranean ground ant communites tracking spatial and temporal variability in the thermal environment. Oecologia 123: 436-444.
 * Santschi, F.. "Fourmis du Maroc, d'Algérie et de Tunisie." Bulletin et Annales de la Société Entomologique de Belgique (Bruxelles) 69 (1929): 138-165.
 * Tinaut, A.. "Contribución al conocimiento de los formícidos del Parque Nacional de Doñana." Boletín de la Asociación Española de Entomología 15 (1991): 57-63.
 * Tinaut, A.. "Descripción de los sexuados de Messor lusitanicus Sanstchi, 1929." Nouvelle Revue d'Entomologie (n.s.) 2 ( (1985): 85-90.
 * de Haro, Andrés, and C. A. Collingwood. "Prospección mirmecológica por Extremadura (España) y Sao Brás-Almodovar, Alcácer do Sal, Serra da Estrela (Portugal)." Boletim da Sociedade Portuguesa de Entomologia Suplemento 3(1) (1992): 95-104.