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Past interactions of ants with other organisms

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Abstract

The question, when ants first appeared, remains unanswered. However, images of ants in Burmese amber show that some extinct types existed back then. By the mid-Cenozoic, most fossil ants could be assigned to extant genera. The present work examines ancient associations between ants and other organisms based on fossils in amber. Topics include fungal associates, interactions with higher plants, associations between ants and arachnids, ants bringing food to the colony, insect parasites and predators, nematode parasites, ants visiting flowers, ant mimics and gut microbes in ants. All specimens included in the present work are listed with the amber source, present location, published accounts and accession numbers of those in the Poinar amber collection (PAC).

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Acknowledgments

The author thanks Cesare Baroni-Urbani, Phil Ward and the late E. O. Wilson for identification of ant genera, the late John Chemsak for the identification of Tilloclytus and Steven Yanoviak for supplying Figs. 35 and 36.

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No funding was used in this study.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Integrative Biology, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, 97331, USA

    George Poinar

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  1. George Poinar
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Appendix

Appendix

Subjects, accession numbers in the Poinar amber collection (PAC), amber sources, present location and published accounts

Fig.

Subject

Accession number

Amber source

Location/ reference

1

Cretaceous worker Sphecomyrmidae “ant”

Burmese

Buckley collection

unknown

2

Cretaceous alate Sphecomyrmidae ant with apparent fungal infection on abdomen

Burmese

Buckley collection

unknown

3

Laboulbeniales infection on ant

Sy- D- 1-22

Dominican

PAC

4

Laboulbeniales on ant-detail

Sy- D- 1-22

Dominican

PAC

5

Pandora sp. on abdomen of winged ant

Sy- D- 1-22

Dominican

PAC

6

Beauveria sp. on Azteca alpha ant

AF-9-28

Dominican

PAC

7

Allocordyceps baltica emerging from a Camponotus sp. ant

Maltier collection

Baltic

Poinar and Maltier (2021)

8

Ascoma of Allocordyceps baltica emerging from ant’s rectum

Maltier collection

Baltic

Poinar and Maltier (2021)

9

Trachymyrmex sp. gardening ant that was carrying a petal

Hy-10-189

Dominican

PAC

10

Apterostigma sp. gardening ant that was carrying leaf portion

Hy-10-168

Dominican

PAC

11

Queen Cyphomyrmex sp. that was carrying a bromatia from her fungus garden

Hy-10-177

Dominican

PAC

12

Worker ant associated with a leaf

 

Baltic

PAC

13

Harvester ant was probably carrying the Alarista succina spikelet

Sd-9-17

Dominican

Poinar and Columbus (2012)

14

Harvester ant with Panicum floret

Sd-9-86

Dominican

PAC

15

Mite attached to ant leg

Sy-1-19

Baltic

PAC

16

Mite attached to ant thorax

Sy-1-19

Baltic

PAC

17

Pseudomyrmex ant prey released by Pulchellaranea pedunculata spider

A-10-267

Dominican

Poinar (2014)

18

Ant in spider web immersed in amber

Sy-1-58

Dominican

PAC

19

Ant and pseudoscorpion

Sy-1-38

Dominican

PAC

20

Ant and pseudoscorpion in combat

Sy-1-38

Dominican

PAC

21

Alate ant carrying scale insect

Sy-10-99

Dominican

PAC

22

Camponotus sp. that was attending aphids on mimosoid leaflet

Sd-9-195

Dominican

PAC

Poinar and Chambers (2016)

23

Azteca alpha ant that was attending aphids on mimosoid leaflet

Sd-9-195

Dominican

PAC

Poinar and Chambers (2016)

24

Worker ants carrying food item

Sy-1-41

Dominican

PAC

25

Worker ant with termite head

Sy-1-92

Dominican

PAC

26

Worker ant carrying ant larva

Sy-1-48

Dominican

PAC

27

Neoneurine braconid parasite

Sy-1-149

Baltic

PAC

28

Extant braconid parasite

Recent photo

Pacific coast

Poinar (2016)

29

Ant hemipteran predator, Praecoris dominicana

He-4-26

Dominican

Poinar and Miller (2002)

Poinar (1991)

30

Balloon secretory glands on Theope caterpillar

L-D-3-25

Dominican

PAC

DeVries and Poinar (1997)

31

Heydenius formicinus emerging from an alate ant

N-3-52

Baltic

PAC

Poinar (2011, 2012)

32

Juvenile Formicodiplogaster myrmenema emerged from between abdominal segments of Azteca alpha

N-3-18G

Dominican

PAC

Poinar (2011, 2012)

Segers et al. (2019)

33

Juvenile diplogastrids in head glands of Formica obscuriventris clivia

N-3-18B

Dominican

PAC

Poinar (2004, 2011)

34

Extinct Cephalotus parasitized by Myrmeconema antiqua

N-3-75

Dominican

PAC

Poinar (2011)

35

Red abdomen of extant Cephalotus atratus parasitized by Myrmecoma neotropicum

Photo courtesy of S. Yanoviak

Dominican

Yanoviak et al. (2008)

36

Red fruits of Hyeronima alchorneoides closely resemble the red abdomen of Cephalotus atratus (arrow) infected with Myrmeconema neotropicum

Photo courtesy of S. Yanoviak

Dominican

Yanoviak et al. (2008)

37

Cephalotus ant visiting a flower of Virola dominicana

Sd-9-30

paratype

Dominican

PAC

Poinar and Steeves (2013)

38

Crematogaster sp. ant visiting flowers of Klaprothiopsis dyscrita

Sd-9-108A

Dominican

PAC

Poinar (2022)

39

Dolichoderine (Formicidae) ant visiting male flower of Ekrixanthera hispaniolae

Sd-9-95B

Dominican

PAC

Poinar et al. (2016)

40

Extant Lasius ant visiting a strawberry flower

Author’s photo

Pacific northwest coast

Poinar (2016)

42

Two recent Orectoderus mirid bug ant mimics

Recent photo

Pacific northwest coast

Poinar (2019)

Schuh and Slater (1995)

44

Worker ant emitting flatulence

Sy-3-4

Dominican

PAC

Boucot and Poinar (2010)

45

Alate ant releasing flatulence

Sy-3-4

Dominican

PAC

Boucot and Poinar (2010)

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Poinar, G. Past interactions of ants with other organisms. Biologia (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11756-024-01665-x

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