Subfamily MYRMICINAE |
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Stenamma diecki, full face view of worker (click photo to enlarge). Photo courtesy of http://www.antweb.org/ |
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Stenamma diecki, side view of worker (click photo to enlarge). Photo courtesy of http://www.antweb.org/ |
Stenamma is a small genus of primitive ants that is mostly Holarctic in distribution (some species in Central America and the Oriental region). They typically live in forested areas. Foraging is usually restricted to the cool times of the year. Colonies are relatively small, cryptic, and often difficult to find, and therefore, nests are not frequently seen. However, foraging workers can be commonly collected by litter extraction, pitfall traps, or other methods. Generic characteristics are as follows: median area of clypeus abruptly raised and somewhat narrowed, with a pair of fine longitudinal carinae that diverge anteriorly, and the area between these carinae concave to flat; propodeum with a pair of teeth; masticatory margin of mandible has 5 or more teeth or denticles; and antenna terminating in a four segmented club. Six described species and two apparently undescribed species (Ipser et al. 2004) are known to occur in the Southeast. Species level identification is difficult due variation in size, color, and sculpture, and reference material is helpful. Stenamma diecki is a relatively small, robust, brown species with coarse sculpture and shining surface texture. Workers range from 2.5 - 3.5 mm in total length (TL) and have small eyes that are less than 0.1 mm in length with 4-6 coarse ommatidia (in greatest diameter of eye) [measurements from Smith (1957) and from specimens]. This species is most similar to S. impar, from which it differs by being more more robust, darker brown (instead of light brown), having slightly smaller eyes, more pronounced rugose sculpture on the pronotum, and lacking sculpture on the dorsum of the postpetiole. Ipser, R. M., M. A. Brinkman, W. A. Gardner, and H. B. Peeler. 2004. A survey of the ground-dwelling ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in Georgia. Florida Entomologist 87 (3): 253-260. Smith, M. R. 1957. Revision of the genus Stenamma Westwood in America north of Mexico (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). The American Midland Naturalist 57: 133-174. Links |
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Author-Joe MacGown: jmacgown@entomology.msstate.edu
The ant web site was uploaded on 6 March 2003 and was last updated on 11 September 2024
(specific pages may have different uploaded and updated dates)
Drawings and photographs by Joe MacGown (unless otherwise noted) and copyrighted by the Mississippi Entomological Museum
The development of this web site was supported in part by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, United States Department of Agriculture, under Project No. MIS-012040 and the USDA-ARS Areawide Management of Imported Fire Ant Project (Richard L. Brown, Principal Investigator).