Nearctic: California > Formicinae

Subfamily: Formicinae

Author: P.S.Ward , Revised: 9/28/2002

Taxonomic Hierarchy:

Identification:

Formicine ants have a single node-like or scale-like petiole (postpetiole entirely lacking) and the apex of the abdomen has a circular or U-shaped opening, usually fringed with hairs (acidopore). A functional sting is absent, and defense is provided by the ejection of formic acid through the acidopore. If the acidopore is concealed by the pygidium and difficult to discern, then the antennal sockets are located well behind the posterior margin of the clypeus (cf. Dolichoderinae). In most formicines the eyes are well developed (ocelli may also be present), the antennal insertions are not concealed by the frontal carinae, and the promesonotal suture is present and flexible.

Notes:

This is a cosmopolitan group, with about 100 species in California. These include mound-building Formica ants; carpenter ants in the genus Camponotus; and honeypot ants (Myrmecocystus).

Taxonomic History (provided by Barry Bolton, 2010)

Formicariae Latreille, 1809: 124. Type-genus: Formica.

Taxonomic history

Formicinae as group name: Latreille, 1809: 124 [Formicariae]; Lepeletier de Saint-Fargeau, 1835: 197 [Formicites]; Nylander, 1846a: 877 [Formicae].

Formicinae as family: Smith, F. 1858b: 1 [Formicidae]; Smith, F. 1861b: 36 [Formicidae]; Smith, 1871a: 302 [Formicidae]; Andr?, 1882a: 125 [Formicidae]; Saunders, 1896: 18 [Formicidae]; Nov?k & Sadil, 1941: 97 [Formicidae]; Bernard, 1951: 1073 [Formicidae]; Bernard, 1953b: 256 [Formicidae].

Formicinae as tribe of Formicidae: Andr?, 1874: 167 [Formicidae].

Formicinae as subfamily of Formicidae: Mayr, 1855: 286, 299 [Formicidae]; Mayr, 1861: 21 [Formicidae]; Mayr, 1862: 651 [Formicidae]; Mayr, 1865: 6 [Formicidae]; Mayr, 1868c: 24 [Formicidae]; Forel, 1870: 307 [Formicidae]; Forel, 1874: 21 [Formicidae]; Emery, 1877a: 70 [Formicidae]; Andr?, 1881b: 54 [Formicidae]; Ashmead, 1905b: 384; Bondroit, 1918: 17 [Formicitae]; Wheeler, W.M. 1920: 53; Wheeler, W.M. 1922a: 210; Emery, 1925b: 2; Karavaiev, 1936: 172; Clark, 1951: 16; Brown, 1954e: 29; Kempf, 1972a: 266; Brown, 1973b: 169; all subsequent authors.

Formicinae as formicomorph subfamily of Formicidae: Bolton, 2003: 20, 93.

Formicinae as formicoid subfamily of Formicidae: Brady, Schultz, et al. 2006: 18173; Moreau, Bell, et al. 2006: 102.

Formicinae as formicoid formicomorph subfamily of Formicidae: Ward, 2007a: 556.

Tribes of Formicinae: Camponotini, Formicini, Gesomyrmecini, Gigantiopini, Lasiini, Melophorini, Myrmecorhynchini, Myrmoteratini, Notostigmatini, Oecophyllini, Plagiolepidini.

Genera (extinct) incertae sedis in Formicinae: *Camponotites, *Drymomyrmex, *Imhoffia, *Kyromyrma, *Leucotaphus, *Protrechina, *Zhangidris.

Hong (2002) genera (extinct) incertae sedis in Formicinae: *Curtipalpulus, *Eoleptocerites, *Eurytarsites, *Fushuniformica, *Huaxiaformica, *Leptogasteritus, *Liaoformica, *Longiformica, *Magnogasterites, *Orbicapitia, *Ovalicapito, *Ovaligastrula, *Sinoformica, *Sinotenuicapito, *Wilsonia (unresolved junior homonym).

Subfamily Formicinae references, world

Mayr, 1862: 651 (genera key); Mayr, 1865: 6 (diagnosis); Handlirsch, 1907: 859 (*fossil taxa catalogue); Dalla Torre, 1893: 171 (catalogue); Emery, 1895j: 772 (synoptic classification); Emery, 1896e: 187 (genera key); Wheeler, W.M. 1910g: 143 (diagnosis); Forel, 1912i: 88 (tribes key); Forel, 1917: 248 (synoptic classification); Arnold, 1920a: 551 (diagnosis); Forel, 1921c: 139 (diagnosis); Wheeler, W.M. 1922a: 210, 691 (diagnosis, tribes key); Emery, 1925b: 2 (diagnosis, tribe key, catalogue); Brown & Nutting, 1950: 127 (venation, phylogeny); Eisner, 1957: 465 (proventriculus morphology); Hung & Brown, 1966: 198 (gastric apex, structure); Bernard, 1967: 267 (diagnosis); Gotwald, 1969: 120 (mouthparts morphology); Wheeler, G.C. & Wheeler, J. 1972a: 41 (diagnosis); Brown, 1973b: 169 (genera, distribution); Wheeler, G.C. & Wheeler, J. 1976b: 62 (larvae, review & synthesis); Snelling, 1981: 402 (synoptic classification); Wheeler, G.C. & Wheeler, J. 1985: 258 (synoptic classification); Billen, 1986: 173 (Dufour's gland); Dlussky & Fedoseeva, 1988: 77 (synoptic classification); H?lldobler & Wilson, 1990: 9 (synoptic classification, genera keys); Agosti, 1991: 295 (genus group diagnoses); Shattuck, 1992b: 201 (phylogeny); Baroni Urbani, Bolton & Ward, 1992: 317 (phylogeny); Bolton, 1994: 42 (diagnosis, synoptic classification, genera keys); Bolton, 1995a: 1039 (census); Bolton, 1995b: 11 (catalogue); Wenseleers, Schoeters, et al. 1998: 121 (cloacal gland); Dlussky & Rasnitsyn, 2002: 417 (diagnosis for impression fossils); Bolton, 2003: 20, 93 (diagnosis, synopsis); Brady, Schultz, et al. 2006: 18173 (phylogeny); Moreau, Bell, et al. 2006: 102 (phylogeny).

Regional and national faunas with keys

Mayr, 1855: 299 (Austria); Mayr, 1861: 25 (Europe); Mayr, 1868c: 25 (*Baltic Amber); Andr?, 1874: 167 (Europe); Forel, 1874: 22 (Switzerland); Saunders, E. 1880: 203 (Britain); Andr?, 1882a: 126 (Europe & Algeria); Provancher, 1887: 225 (Canada); Cresson, 1887: 94 (U.S.A. genera); Nasonov, 1889: 50 (Russia); Forel, 1891b: 8 (Madagascar genera); Lameere, 1892: 62 (Belgium); Forel, 1892j: 220 (India & Sri Lanka); Bingham, 1903: 308 (India, Sri Lanka & Burma); Ruzsky, 1905b: 100 (Russian Empire); Wasmann, 1906: 7 (Luxemburg); Bondroit, 1910: 481 (Belgium); Wheeler, W.M. 1910g: 560 (North America genera); Stitz, 1914: 80 (Central Europe); Gallardo, 1915: 35 (Argentina genera); Forel, 1915d: 45 (Switzerland); Donisthorpe, 1915d: 184 (Britain); Emery, 1916b: 216 (Italy); Wheeler, W.M. 1916m: 590 (U.S.A., Connecticut); Bondroit, 1918: 17 (France & Belgium); Arnold, 1920a: 552 (South Africa); Kutter, 1920b: 134 (Switzerland); Soudek, 1922: 61 (Czechoslovakia); Lomnicki, 1925a: 160 (Poland); St?rcke, 1926: 118, 146 (Netherlands); Karavaiev, 1927c: 273 (Ukraine); Donisthorpe, 1927b: 205 (Britain); Menozzi & Russo, 1930: 172 (Dominican Republic); Arnol'di, 1933b: 601 (Russia); Menozzi, 1933b: 90 (Israel genera); Karavaiev, 1936: 173 (Ukraine); Smith, M.R. 1937: 865 (Puerto Rico); Stitz, 1939: 230 (Germany); Kratochv?l, 1941: 97 (Central Europe); Nov?k & Sadil, 1941: 97 (Central Europe); Cole, 1942: 373 (U.S.A., Utah); Smith, M.R. 1943f: 309 (U.S.A., males); Buren, 1944a: 292 (U.S.A., Iowa); Holgersen, 1943b: 173 (Norway); Holgersen, 1944: 199 (Norway); Smith, M.R. 1947f: 599 (U.S.A. genera); Boven, 1947: 181 (Belgium); Creighton, 1950a: 355 (North America); Kusnezov, 1956: 31 (Argentina); Brown, 1958h: 42 (New Zealand); Boven, 1959: 11 (Netherlands); Gregg, 1963: 447 (U.S.A., Colorado); Wheeler, G.C. & Wheeler, J. 1963: 160 (U.S.A., North Dakota); Collingwood, 1964: 104 (Britain); Bernard, 1967: 268 (Western Europe); Wilson & Taylor, 1967: 17 (Polynesia); Boven, 1970b: 26 (Netherlands); Kempf, 1972a: 266 (Neotropical, synoptic classification); Bolton, 1973a: 329 (West Africa genera); Bolton & Collingwood, 1975: 3 (Britain); Snelling & Hunt, 1976: 104 (Chile); Tarbinsky, 1976: 126 (Kyrghyzstan); Boven, 1977: 126 (Belgium); Kutter, 1977c: 183 (Switzerland); Arnol'di & Dlussky, 1978: 548 (former European U.S.S.R.); Collingwood, 1978: 88 (Iberian Peninsula); Collingwood, 1979: 85 (Fennoscandia & Denmark); Greenslade, 1979: 32 (South Australia genera); Schembri & Collingwood, 1981: 436 (Malta); Prins, 1983: 8 (Southern Africa genera); Allred, 1982: 444 (U.S.A., Utah); Verhaeghe, Deligne, et al., 1984: 106 (Belgium genera); Baroni Urbani, 1984: 81 (Neotropical genera); G?sswald, 1985: 263 (Germany); Collingwood, 1985: 273 (Saudi Arabia); Wheeler, G.C. & Wheeler, J. 1986g: 58 (U.S.A., Nevada); Nilsson & Douwes, 1987: 68 (Norway); Agosti & Collingwood, 1987b: 279 (Balkans); Dlussky, Soyunov & Zabelin, 1990: 124 (Turkmenistan); Kupyanskaya, 1990: 162 (Far Eastern Russia); Morisita, Kubota, Onoyama, et al., 1991: 10 (Japan); Atanasov & Dlussky, 1992: 49 (Bulgaria); Shattuck, 1992b: 199 (higher classification, phylogeny); Lattke, in Jaffe, 1993: 150 (Neotropical genera); Arakelian, 1994: 76 (Armenia); Wu, J. & Wang, 1995: 125 (China genera); Kupyanskaya, 1995: 332 (Far Eastern Russia); Collingwood & Agosti, 1996: 361 (Saudi Arabia); Seifert, 1996b: 166 (Central Europe); Skinner & Allen, 1996: 41 (Britain); Collingwood & Prince, 1998: 21 (Portugal); Shattuck, 1999: 25, 86 (Australia genera, synopsis); Andersen, 2000: 68 (northern Australia genera); Zhou, 2001b: 165 (China, Guangxi); Czechowski, Radchenko & Czechowska, 2002: 147 (Poland); Akta� & Radchenko, 2002: 54 (Turkey genera); Yoshimura & Onoyama, 2002: 425 (Japan genera, males); MacKay & MacKay, 2002: 236 (U.S.A., New Mexico); Palacio & Fern?ndez, in Fern?ndez, 2003d: 242 (Neotropical genera); Radchenko, 2005b: 187 (North Korea); Coovert, 2005: 113 (U.S.A., Ohio); Clouse, 2007b: 190 (Micronesia); Seifert, 2007: 150 (North and Central Europe); Terayama, 2009: 202 (Taiwan).