Myrmecia pavida

Myrmecia pavida
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Hymenoptera
Family:	Formicidae
Subfamily:	Myrmeciinae
Tribe:	Myrmeciini
Genus:	Myrmecia
Species:	M. pavida
Binomial name
Myrmecia pavida Clark, 1951
Synonyms
Myrmecia atrata Clark, 1951

Identification

Myrmecia arnoldi, Myrmecia pavida and Myrmecia rubripes are all closely related and share a similar range.

Keys including this Species

• Key to Australian Myrmecia Species
• Key to Myrmecia of the southwestern Australian Botanical Province

Distribution

Heterick (2009) - Southwestern WA to southern SA.

Latitudinal Distribution Pattern

Latitudinal Range: -31.56666756° to -35°.

North Temperate	North Subtropical	Tropical	South Subtropical	South Temperate

• Source: AntMaps

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists

Australasian Region: Australia (type locality).

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.

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.

Biology

Chappell et al. (2013): We find little evidence of geographic structuring or inbreeding in the population, indicating that the species outbreeds, most probably in mating swarms. We also find that queens of M. pavida show moderately high polyandry, with 84% having mated with between two and seven males, and an overall mean observed mating frequency of 3.8. This is significantly higher than previously reported for queens of Nothomyrmecia macrops, in which most females mate singly. This was similar to that of Myrmecia pyriformis, Myrmecia brevinoda, and Myrmecia pilosula, the three congenerics for which mating frequencies have recently been reported.

Association with Other Organisms

• This species is a host for the eucharitid wasp Austeucharis sp. (a parasitoid) (Quevillon, 2018) (multiple encounter modes; direct transmission; transmission outside nest).

Nomenclature

The following information is derived from Barry Bolton's Online Catalogue of the Ants of the World.

• pavida. Myrmecia pavida Clark, 1951: 76, fig. 54 (w.) AUSTRALIA (Western Australia).
  • Type-material: holotype worker, paratype workers (number not stated).
  • Type-locality: holotype Australia: Western Australia, Mt Barker, xi.1947 (T. Greaves); paratypes with same data.
  • Type-depository: ANIC.
  • Status as species: Taylor & Brown, 1985: 14; Taylor, 1987a: 45; Ogata, 1991a: 358; Ogata & Taylor, 1991: 1637 (in key), 1659; Bolton, 1995b: 272; Heterick, 2009: 121.
  • Senior synonym of atrata: Ogata & Taylor, 1991: 1659; Bolton, 1995b: 272.
  • Distribution: Australia.
• atrata. Myrmecia atrata Clark, 1951: 77, fig. 55 (w.) AUSTRALIA (Western Australia).
  • Type-material: holotype worker, paratype workers (number not stated).
  • Type-locality: holotype Australia: Western Australia, Ravensthorpe, xi.1947 (T. Greaves); paratypes with same data.
  • Type-depository: ANIC.
  • Status as species: Taylor & Brown, 1985: 6; Taylor, 1987a: 41; Ogata, 1991a: 358.
  • Junior synonym of pavida: Ogata & Taylor, 1991: 1659; Bolton, 1995b: 270.

Type Material

• Myrmecia pavida: Holotype, worker, Mt. Barker, Western Australia, Australia, Greaves,T., ANIC32-013392, Australian National Insect Collection.
• Myrmecia atrata: Holotype, worker, Ravensthorpe, Western Australia, Australia, Greaves,T., ANIC32-015328, Australian National Insect Collection.

Description

Karyotype

• 2n = 44 (Australia) (Hirai et al., 1996).

References

• Als, V., Narendra, A., Arthofer, W., Krapf, P., Steiner, F.M., Schlick-Steiner, B.C. 2021. Colony structure, population structure, and sharing of foraging trees in the ant Myrmecia nigriceps (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Insectes Sociaux 68, 327–335 (doi:10.1007/s00040-021-00831-7).
• Chappell, P., Roberts, K., Baer, B. & Hughes, W.O.H. 2013. Mating system and population genetic structure of the bulldog ant Myrmecia pavida (Hymenoptera Formicidae). Myrmecological News 18, 25-32.
• Clark, J. 1951. The Formicidae of Australia. 1. Subfamily Myrmeciinae: 230 pp. CSIRO, Melbourne. [(31.xii).1951.]
• Heterick, B. E. 2009. A guide to the ants of South-western Australia. Records of the Western Australian Museum, Supplement 76:1-206.
• Heterick, B.E. 2021. A guide to the ants of Western Australia. Part I: Systematics. Records of the Western Australian Museum, Supplement 86, 1-245 (doi:10.18195/issn.0313-122x.86.2021.001-245).
• Heterick, B.E. 2022. A guide to the ants of Western Australia. Part II: Distribution and biology. Records of the Western Australian Museum, supplement 86: 247-510 (doi:10.18195/issn.0313-122x.86.2022.247-510).
• Ogata, K.; Taylor, R. W. 1991. Ants of the genus Myrmecia Fabricius: a preliminary review and key to the named species (Hymenoptera: Formicidae: Myrmeciinae). J. Nat. Hist. 2 25: 1623-1673 (page 1659, Senior synonym of atrata)

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

• Heterick B. E. 2009. A guide to the ants of south-western Australia. Records of the Western Australian Museum Supplement 76: 1-206. 
• Ogata K. and Taylor R.W. 1991. Ants of the genus Myrmecia Fabricius: a preliminary review and key to the named species (Hymenoptera: Formicidae: Myrmeciinae), Journal of Natural History, 25: 1623-1673