Aenictus
Encyclopedia
The army ant
genus Aenictus is an enigmatic group known from Africa
, tropical Asia
, and Queensland
. There are some 100 species presently recognized, though many other names are applied at the rank of subspecies. This group has in the past been classified as the tribe Aenictini in the former subfamily "Dorylinae", or even as its own subfamily Aenictinae.
Very little is known about the biology and behavior of these ants aside from the recognition that they do appear to be "army ants" in the broad sense (foraging via "raids", and no permanent nest site), and that they are closely related to the genus Dorylus
, these two genera comprising the sister taxon to the New World
Ecitonini
.
Army ant
The name army ant is applied to over 200 ant species, in different lineages, due to their aggressive predatory foraging groups, known as "raids", in which huge numbers of ants forage simultaneously over a certain area, attacking prey en masse.Another shared feature is that, unlike most ant...
genus Aenictus is an enigmatic group known from Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
, tropical Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
, and Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
. There are some 100 species presently recognized, though many other names are applied at the rank of subspecies. This group has in the past been classified as the tribe Aenictini in the former subfamily "Dorylinae", or even as its own subfamily Aenictinae.
Very little is known about the biology and behavior of these ants aside from the recognition that they do appear to be "army ants" in the broad sense (foraging via "raids", and no permanent nest site), and that they are closely related to the genus Dorylus
Dorylus
The army ant genus Dorylus, also known as driver ants, safari ants, or siafu, is found primarily in central and east Africa, although the range also extends to tropical Asia. The term siafu is a loanword from Swahili, and is one of numerous similar words from regional Bantu languages used by...
, these two genera comprising the sister taxon to the New World
New World
The New World is one of the names used for the Western Hemisphere, specifically America and sometimes Oceania . The term originated in the late 15th century, when America had been recently discovered by European explorers, expanding the geographical horizon of the people of the European middle...
Ecitonini
Ecitonini
The New World army ant tribe Ecitonini contains most of the familiar species of army ants. The genus Neivamyrmex is the largest of all army ant genera, containing some 120 species, most in the Neotropics but some with ranges in the United States....
.
Species
- Aenictus abeillei (Andre, 1886)
- Aenictus alluaudi Santschi, 1910
- Aenictus alticola Wheeler & Chapman, 1930
- Aenictus ambiguus Shuckard, 1840
- Aenictus anceps Forel, 1910
- Aenictus annae Forel, 1911
- Aenictus aratus Forel, 1900
- Aenictus artipus Wilson, 1964
- Aenictus arya Forel, 1901
- Aenictus asantei Campione, Novak & Gotwald, 1983
- Aenictus asperivalvus Santschi, 1919
- Aenictus bakeri Menozzi, 1925
- Aenictus bayoni Menozzi, 1933
- Aenictus binghami Forel, 1900
- Aenictus biroi Forel, 1907
- Aenictus bottegoi Emery, 1899
- Aenictus brazzai Santschi, 1910
- Aenictus brevicornis (Mayr, 1879)
- Aenictus buttelreepeni Forel, 1913
- Aenictus buttgenbachi Forel, 1913
- Aenictus camposi Wheeler & Chapman, 1925
- Aenictus certus Westwood, 1842
- Aenictus ceylonicusAenictus ceylonicusAenictus ceylonicus is a species of reddish brown army ant found in Southern India, Sri Lanka, Southeast Asia and Australia. They are completely blind and around 3 mm in length. These ants are seen foraging underneath leaf litter in forests and well-vegetated areas, travelling in a trail of in...
(Mayr, 1866) - Aenictus chapmani Wilson, 1964
- Aenictus clavatus Forel, 1901
- Aenictus clavitibia Forel, 1901
- Aenictus congolensis Santschi, 1911
- Aenictus cornutus Forel, 1900
- Aenictus crucifer Santschi, 1914
- Aenictus currax Emery, 1900
- Aenictus decolor (Mayr, 1879)
- Aenictus dentatus Forel, 1911
- Aenictus dlusskyi Arnol'di, 1968
- Aenictus doryloides Wilson, 1964
- Aenictus eugenii Emery, 1895
- Aenictus exilis Wilson, 1964
- Aenictus feae Emery, 1889
- Aenictus fergusoni Forel, 1901
- Aenictus foreli Santschi, 1919
- Aenictus furculatus Santschi, 1919
- Aenictus furibundus Arnold, 1959
- Aenictus fuscipennis Forel, 1913
- Aenictus fuscovarius Gerstaecker, 1859
- Aenictus gibbosus Dalla Torre, 1893
- Aenictus gleadowii Forel, 1901
- Aenictus gracilis Emery, 1893
- Aenictus grandis Bingham, 1903
- Aenictus hamifer Emery, 1896
- Aenictus hilli Clark, 1928
- Aenictus hottai Terayama & Yamane, 1989
- Aenictus humeralis Santschi, 1910
- Aenictus huonicus Wilson, 1964
- Aenictus icarus Forel, 1911
- Aenictus idoneus Menozzi, 1928
- Aenictus inconspicuus Westwood, 1843
- Aenictus jacobsoni Forel, 1909
- Aenictus javanus Emery, 1896
- Aenictus laeviceps (Smith, 1857)
- Aenictus latifemoratus Terayama & Yamane, 1989
- Aenictus latiscapus Forel, 1901
- Aenictus leliepvrei Bernard, 1953
- Aenictus lifuiae Terayama, 1984
- Aenictus longi Forel, 1901
- Aenictus luteus Emery, 1892
- Aenictus luzoni Wheeler & Chapman, 1925
- Aenictus mariae Emery, 1895
- Aenictus maroccanus Santschi, 1926
- Aenictus mauritanicus Santschi, 1910
- Aenictus mentu Weber, 1942
- Aenictus minutulus Terayama & Yamane, 1989
- Aenictus mocsaryi Emery, 1901
- Aenictus moebii Emery, 1895
- Aenictus mutatus Santschi, 1913
- Aenictus nganduensis Wilson, 1964
- Aenictus obscurus Smith, 1865
- Aenictus pachycerus (Smith, 1858)
- Aenictus peguensis Emery, 1895
- Aenictus pharoa Santschi, 1924
- Aenictus philiporum Wilson, 1964
- Aenictus philippinensis Chapman, 1963
- Aenictus piercei Wheeler & Chapman, 1930
- Aenictus porizonoides Walker, 1860
- Aenictus powersi Wheeler & Chapman, 1930
- Aenictus pubescens Smith, 1859
- Aenictus punctiventris Emery, 1901
- Aenictus punensis Forel, 1901
- Aenictus rabori Chapman, 1963
- Aenictus raptor Forel, 1913
- Aenictus reyesi Chapman, 1963
- Aenictus rhodiensis Menozzi, 1936
- Aenictus rixator Forel, 1901
- Aenictus rotundatus Mayr, 1901
- Aenictus rougieri Andre, 1893
- Aenictus sagei Forel, 1901
- Aenictus schneirlai Wilson, 1964
- Aenictus shuckardi Forel, 1901
- Aenictus silvestrii Wheeler, 1929
- Aenictus soudanicus Santschi, 1910
- Aenictus spathifer Santschi, 1928
- Aenictus steindachneri Mayr, 1901
- Aenictus sumatrensis Forel, 1913
- Aenictus togoensis Santschi, 1915
- Aenictus trigonus Forel, 1911
- Aenictus vagans Santschi, 1924
- Aenictus vaucheri Emery, 1915
- Aenictus villiersi Bernard, 1953
- Aenictus weissi Santschi, 1910
- Aenictus westwoodi Forel, 1901
- Aenictus wroughtonii Forel, 1890
Further reading
- Wheeler, William M. (1930): Philippine ants of the genus Aenictus with descriptions of the females of two species. Journal of the New York Entomological Society 38: 193-212. PDF