Temnothorax americanus

Temnothorax americanus
	Temnothorax americanus worker
Conservation status
	; Vulnerable (IUCN 2.3)[1]
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Hymenoptera
Family:	Formicidae
Subfamily:	Myrmicinae
Genus:	Temnothorax
Species:	T. americanus
Binomial name
	Temnothorax americanus; (Emery, 1895)

Temnothorax americanus is a species of slave-maker ant in the genus Temnothorax. The ants are 2–3 mm in size, and endemic to the northeastern United States and adjacent Canadian regions.[1] They do not forage for food, but instead 'scout workers' from the colony seek out nearby host colonies of ants (e.g. Temnothorax longispinosus),[2] steal larvae and bring them back to their own colony. A small T. americanus colony could consist of a queen, two to five workers and thirty to sixty slaves.[3]

In a study published in Animal Behaviour, researchers showed that T. americanus scouts target stronger colonies over weaker ones to steal larvae from.[3][4]

It was formerly placed as the sole member of the genus Protomognathus.[5]

References

Social Insects Specialist Group (1996). "Protomognathus americanus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 1996: e.T18379A8177548. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.1996.RLTS.T18379A8177548.en. Retrieved 17 November 2021.
Modlmeier, Andreas P.; Foitzik, Susanne (2011). "Productivity increases with variation in aggression among group members in Temnothorax ants". Behavioral Ecology. 22 (5): 1026–1032. doi:10.1093/beheco/arr086. ISSN 1465-7279.
Davies, Davies (8 November 2010). "Slave-making ants target the strong not the weak". BBC News. Retrieved 21 August 2014.
Pohl, Sebastian; Foitzik, Susanne (2011). "Slave-making ants prefer larger, better defended host colonies". Animal Behaviour. 81 (1): 61–68. doi:10.1016/j.anbehav.2010.09.006. S2CID 53177420.
Ward, Philip S.; Brady, Sean G.; Fisher, Brian L.; Schultz, Ted R. (2015). "The evolution of myrmicine ants: phylogeny and biogeography of a hyperdiverse ant clade (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)". Systematic Entomology. 40 (1): 61–81. doi:10.1111/syen.12090. ISSN 1365-3113. S2CID 83986771.

External links

Media related to Temnothorax americanus at Wikimedia Commons

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[iucn-1] Social Insects Specialist Group (1996). "Protomognathus americanus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 1996: e.T18379A8177548. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.1996.RLTS.T18379A8177548.en. Retrieved 17 November 2021.

[2] Modlmeier, Andreas P.; Foitzik, Susanne (2011). "Productivity increases with variation in aggression among group members in Temnothorax ants". Behavioral Ecology. 22 (5): 1026–1032. doi:10.1093/beheco/arr086. ISSN 1465-7279.

[bbc-3] Davies, Davies (8 November 2010). "Slave-making ants target the strong not the weak". BBC News. Retrieved 21 August 2014.

[anim_behav-4] Pohl, Sebastian; Foitzik, Susanne (2011). "Slave-making ants prefer larger, better defended host colonies". Animal Behaviour. 81 (1): 61–68. doi:10.1016/j.anbehav.2010.09.006. S2CID 53177420.

[Ward_et_al_2015-5] Ward, Philip S.; Brady, Sean G.; Fisher, Brian L.; Schultz, Ted R. (2015). "The evolution of myrmicine ants: phylogeny and biogeography of a hyperdiverse ant clade (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)". Systematic Entomology. 40 (1): 61–81. doi:10.1111/syen.12090. ISSN 1365-3113. S2CID 83986771.