Formica Chilensis , Spin. Faun. Chili, vi. 237. 2 [[worker]].
Hab. Chili.
Formica , pt., Linn. Faun. Suec. 426 (1761); Syst. Nat. i. 962 (1766).
Lasius , pt., Fabr. Syst. Piez. 415 (1804).
Cataglyphis , Foerst. Hym. Stud. Form. 485 (1850).
Tapinoma , pt., Schenck, Besch. Nass. Ameis. 129 (1852).
Monocombus ,.Mayr. 110 (1855).
The maxillary palpi 6-jointed; the labial palpi 4-jointed. Ocelli 3, placed in a triangle on the vertex*. Males and females winged, constantly so in the former sex, temporarily so in the latter. The superior wings with one marginal and two submarginal cells; one division having also a complete discoidal cell, another in which it is obsolete; the petiole of the abdomen furnished with a single vertical scale. None of the individuals furnished with a sting. The pupae enclosed in silken cocoons.
Formica Dalmatica, Nyl. Addit. Alter. Adno. Mon. Form. Bor. 37.
Hab. Dalmatia.
Worker. Length 4 1/2 lines.-Black: the flagellum, thorax, legs and scale of the peduncle rufo-testaceous; the tibiae and basal joint of the tarsi more or less dusky; head large and cordate; eyes ovate, placed above the middle at the sides of the head; the head opake; the clypeus subcarinate in the middle and shining, as well as the mandibles, the latter armed with six stout teeth; the extreme base of the scape pale testaceous. Thorax much narrower than the head, rounded anteriorly and compressed behind. Abdomen: the scale incrassate, narrowed to a thin edge at its upper margin, which is rounded; the scale is narrow, rounded in front and straight behind; the abdomen oblong-ovate; the head, thorax and abdomen have a few scattered, long, erect pale hairs.
Hab. Ceylon.
E1 [endemic to California], E2 [endemic to California floristic province (Hickman, 1993)]
In the F microgyna subgroup, within the F rufa-group .
In California the members of this genus are most prevalent in montane habitats, although a few species occur in drier, low elevation sites. Formica species are ground-nesting ants with generalist foraging habits. Francoeur’s (1973) authoritative revision of the Formica fusca-group allows the species in that group to be relatively easily identified. Taxonomic difficulties still plague the Formica rufa-group , which contains most of the remaining species in California.
Species identification: keys in Francoeur (1973), Wheeler and Wheeler (1986g), Snelling and Buren (1985) and Mackay and Mackay (2002). Additional references: Agosti (1994b), Agosti and Bolton (1990b), Buren (1968a), Cole (1956d, 1956f, 1956g), Creighton(1940a, 1950a), Dlussky (1967), Francoeur and Snelling (1979), Gösswald (1989, 1990), Savolainen (1998), Smith (1979), Trager et al. (2005), Wilson and Brown (1955).
Latr. Fabr. Zett. Lepelet. de S: t Farg. Dahlbom. Losana.
Corpus majoris, mediae vel parvae staturae. Lingua brevis rotundata. Palpi maxillares 6 - articulati, labiales 4 - articulati dimidia longitudiue priorum breviores. Antennae fractae valde vibrabiles; scopus longitudine dimidiae vel saltem plus quam tertae partis tonus antennae.
Operaria magnitudine est maris vel parum major aut minor, formatione capitis ejusque partium sicut feminae, praeter quod in nonnullis speciebus nulla habeat stemmata. Thorax anterius rotundatus capite semper gracilior, lateribus compressis, dorso in aliis aequali, in aliis medio immerso locoque scutelli elevatiusculo. Abdomen ovato-rotundatum capite latius, longitudiue thoracis *). Pedes tarsis longioribus gracilioribus quam in femina.
Femina saepissime major est quam operaria et mas. Mandibulae latae robustae, apice denticulatae. Antennae 12 - articutatae
(praeter radiculam), capite duplo longiores, flagello filiformi versus apicem perparum incrassato. Ocelli semper adsunt. Thorax compresso-subovatus duplo fere altior et latior quam operaria, scutello ejusdem altitudinis ac dorsum thoracis. Alae amplae, anteriores corpore saepissime paullo longiores, posteriores abdomen excedentes; nervi conspicui, area radialis anguste triangularis clausa, areae cubitales binae angulis acutissimis invicem conterminae, et in plurimis nostris adhuc area discoidalis trapezoidea, basi areae cubitalis primae aduexa, obveniunt. Pedes tibiis anticis intus versus apices saepissime parce spinulosis vel setulosis. Abdomen 5 - annulatum capite latius et thorace nonnihil longius oblongo-rotundatum depressiusculum vel subglobosum et tum brevius. Genitalia inclusa intra ultimum segmentum.
Mas plerumque femina multo minor, sed interdum ejusdem magnitudinis. Caput multo minus quam in femina, minusque adhuc quam in operaria, mandibulis fere triplo saepissime angustioribus quam in iis oculisque magis prominulis. Antennae 13 - articulatae graciliores quam in femina, flagello aequali. Thorax gibbosus. Alae ut in femina, corporis circiter longitudine. Abdomen 6 - annulatum latitudine thoracis, longitudine thoracis capitisque, subconicum supra deplanatus, ano aliquantum angustato et deflexo, genitalibus ad partem exsertis valvulaque ventrali subtus suffultis. Partes genitalium procedentes varie formatae praecipue sunt: squamutae laterales, penicilli dorsales pilosuli membranula versus basin conjuncti, vaginae externae et internae atque inter has ambas utrinque partes vaginantes aliae breviores unco in apice: saepe munitae (vaginae intermediae). Tarsi graciliores quam in operariis, pulvillis et unguiculis magnis.
Subdivis. 1. [[ worker ]] et [[ queen ]] corpore in hoc genere maximo, [[ worker ]] stemmatibus nullis, thoracis lateribus valde compressis, dorso aequali, [[ queen ]] [[ male ]] planiusculo. Alae area discoidali nulla. [[ queen ]] abdomine oblongo-rotundato. [[ male ]] genitalibus parvis, vaginis angustis, externis rectis.
without " sting, the antennae inserted near the forehead, and with triangular jaws; abdominal pedicle of only one knot or scale.
This genus comprises two distinct forms, the one with spines on the thorax, the other unarmed, which certainly ought to form two genera, inasmuch as this distinction is made to separate Atta from Ocodoma .
1 st, without spines on the thorax.
Lingua brevis, rotundata. Palpi maxillares 6-articulati, labiales 4-articulati, dimidia longitudine priorum breviores. Antennffi fractae. Abdominis segmentum primum (s. petiolus) squama erecta plus minus compressa.
Formica , pt, Linn. Faun. Suec. 426,1761. Lasius , pt, Fab. Syst. Piez. 415, 1804.
Formica is a genus of ants of the family Formicidae, commonly known as wood ants, mound ants, thatching ants, and field ants. Formica is the type genus of the Formicidae, and of the subfamily Formicinae.[3] The type species of genus Formica is the European red wood ant Formica rufa.[1] Ants of this genus tend to be between 4 and 8 mm long.[4]
As the name wood ant implies, many Formica species live in wooded areas where no shortage of material exists with which they can thatch their mounds (often called anthills[5]). One shade-tolerant species is F. lugubris. However, sunlight is important to most Formica species, and colonies rarely survive for any considerable period in deeply shaded, dense woodland. The majority of species, especially outside the F. rufa species group, are inhabitants of more open woodlands or treeless grassland or shrubland. In North America, at least, these habitats had a long history of frequent landscape-scale fires that kept them open before European settlement. Conversion to agriculture and fire suppression have reduced the abundance of most American Formica species, while the cessation of traditional haycutting seems to have had the same effect in Europe. However, at least a few Formica species may be found in a wide range of habitats from cities to seasides to grasslands to swamps to forests of the temperate Northern Hemisphere.
In more suburban landscapes, they tend to nest near structures such as sidewalks, fences, or building foundations.[4]
Mound-building, forest-dwelling Formica species groups such as F. rufa often have a considerable effect on their environments. They maintain large populations of aphids on the secretions of which they feed, and which the ants defend from other predators. They also prey on other insects. In fact, in many countries, they are introduced in forests to control tree pests, such as swains jack pine sawfly and eastern tent caterpillars in North America. The effects of mound-building grassland species such as F. montana are not well-studied, but their local abundance, conspicuous mound-building, and very frequent association with aphids and membracids point to a comparably important ecological role.
Formica nests are of many different types from simple shaft-and-chamber excavations in soil with a small crater or turret of soil above to large mounds, under stones or logs, or in stumps. None is arboreal. The genus is abundant in both the Nearctic and Palearctic regions. Due to their relatively large size and diurnal activity, they are among the more commonly seen ants in northern North America. Some species, including F. rufa, which is common in Southern England, make large, visible thatch nests of dry plant stems, leaves, or conifer needles, usually based around a rotting stump.
Most Formica species are polygynous (have multiple queens per colony), and some are polydomous (have multiple nests belonging to the same colony).[6] Queens may be singly or multiply mated, and may or may not be related. Formica polyctena has polygynous colonies.[7]
Wood ants typically secrete formic acid; F. rufa can squirt the acid from its acidopore several feet if alarmed, a habit which may have given rise to the archaic term for ant, "pismire", and by analogy its American equivalent "piss-ant". They can be relatively large; F. rufa workers can reach a maximum length around 10 mm. The eastern US species F. dolosa and the western F. ravida (syn. F. haemorrhoidalis) may be slightly longer.
Ants are eusocial organisms – the individuals of the species work together to survive, produce the next generation, and accomplish tasks which cannot be accomplished alone.[8] Unlike other ants, the genus Formica does not have separate castes, which are based on an individual's specialization and morphology. For example, F. selysi, a species native to floodplains, has developed a method to deal with flooding. Individual ants come together to form a living raft to survive the flood. Individual ants tend to take the position in the raft which they held in the past. This return to the same role in the raft is an example of specialization.[8]
Formica ants are notable for their socially parasitic behaviors. The three categories are:
Some species of this group need to do this to survive, for others it is optional.
As of 2018, Formica contains at least 290 extant species and 59 extinct species.[2][10]
Species include:[11]
Formica is a genus of ants of the family Formicidae, commonly known as wood ants, mound ants, thatching ants, and field ants. Formica is the type genus of the Formicidae, and of the subfamily Formicinae. The type species of genus Formica is the European red wood ant Formica rufa. Ants of this genus tend to be between 4 and 8 mm long.
