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Ants (Insecta: Vespida: Formicidae) in the upper Eocene amber of central and Eastern Europe

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Abstract

A total of 5754 ant inclusions from 13 European collections of Baltic, Bitterfeld, Rovno, and Scandinavian ambers are studied and identified as belonging to 147 species, 57 genera, and 9 subfamilies. The taxonomic composition and relative species abundances of species in representative collections are analyzed and considerable differences between the above four types of amber are shown. These differences appear to reflect differences in ecological conditions rather than in age. The Baltic and Bitterfeld ant assemblages are shown to be most similar, the Scandinavian assemblage turns out to be most dissimilar to these, and the Rovno assemblage is shown to be intermediate.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Biological Faculty, Moscow State University, Moscow, 119899, Russia

    G. M. Dlussky

  2. Borissiak Paleontological Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences, ul. Profsoyuznaya 123, 117868, Moscow, Russia

    A. P. Rasnitsyn

  3. Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, London, SW7 5BD, UK

    A. P. Rasnitsyn

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  1. G. M. Dlussky
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  2. A. P. Rasnitsyn
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Correspondence to G. M. Dlussky.

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Dlussky, G.M., Rasnitsyn, A.P. Ants (Insecta: Vespida: Formicidae) in the upper Eocene amber of central and Eastern Europe. Paleontol. J. 43, 1024–1042 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1134/S0031030109090056

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