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Formicinae
Formica rufa worker
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Arthropoda Class: Insecta Order: Hymenoptera Family: Formicidae Subfamily: Formicinae Lepeletier, 1836
Genera
See text.

Formicinae is a subfamily within the Formicidae containing ants of moderate evolutionary development.

Formicines retain some primitive features such as the presence of cocoons around pupae, the presence of ocelli in workers, and little tendency toward reduction of palp or antennal segmentation in most species, except subterranean groups. Extreme modification of mandibles is rare, except in the genera Myrmoteras and Polyergus. On the other hand, some members show considerable evolutionary advancement in behaviors such as slave-making and symbiosis with root-feeding homopterans. Finally, all formicines have a very reduced sting and enlarged venom reservoir, with the venom gland, specialized (uniquely among ants) for the production of formic acid.

Classification

The tribal structure of Formicinae is not completely understood. This list follows the scheme at antbase.org, but there are other schemes and names.

• Camponotini
  • Calomyrmex
  • Camponotus – Carpenter ants (Global)
  • Chaemeromyrma
  • Echinopla
  • Forelophilus
  • Opisthopsis
  • Overbeckia
  • Phasmomyrmex
  • Polyrhachis (Asian, African tropics)
  • Pseudocamponotus
• Formicini
  • Alloformica
  • Bajcaridris
  • Cataglyphis
  • Formica – Wood ants
  • Polyergus – Amazon ants
  • Proformica
  • Protoformica
  • Rossomyrmex
• Gesomyrmecini
  • Gesomyrmex
  • Prodimorphomyrmex
  • Santschiella
  • Sicilomyrmex
• Gigantopini
  • Gigantiops (Neotropical)
• Lasiini
  • Acanthomyops
  • Acropyga
  • Anoplolepis
  • Cladomyrma
  • Lasiophanes
  • Lasius
  • Myrmecocystus
  • Prolasius
  • Stigmacros
  • Teratomyrmex
• Melophorini
  • Melophorus (Australian)
• Myrmecorhynchini
  • Myrmecorhynchus
  • Notoncus
  • Pseudonotoncus
• Myrmoteranini
  • Myrmoteras
• Notostigmatini
  • Notostigma
• Oecophyllini
  • Oecophylla – Weaver ants
• Plagiolepidini
  • Agraulomyrmex
  • Aphomomyrmex
  • Brachymyrmex
  • Bregmatomyrma
  • Euprenolepsis
  • Myrmelachista
  • Paratrechina – Crazy ants
  • Petalomyrmex
  • Plagiolepis
  • Pseudaphomomyrmex
  • Pseudolasius
  • Tapinolepis
• Incertae sedis
  • Eucharis
  • Imhoffia
  • Kyromyrma (fossil: Cretaceous)
  • Leucotaphus
  • Protrechina
  • Tylolasius

References

• B. Bolton, A new general catalogue of the ants of the world, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA, 1995.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Formicinae

• Formicinae at antbase.org
• Kye S. Hedlund, Subfamily Formicinae

Wikipedia content modification information:

• This page was last modified on 18 May 2008, at 21:21.

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