Dorylinae Leach, 1815

Boudinot, Brendon E., 2015, Contributions to the knowledge of Formicidae (Hymenoptera, Aculeata): a new diagnosis of the family, the first global male-based key to subfamilies, and a treatment of early branching lineages, European Journal of Taxonomy 120, pp. 1-62 : 48-49

Subfamily Dorylinae Leach, 1815

Figs 5 A–B, E, 6C, 14C–D

Diagnosis

Most Dorylinae are uniquely identified by the bidentate or pronged ninth abdominal sternum, lack of pygostyles, and poorly developed clypeus. Males of the Leptanilloides genus group are highly derived and are identifiable by the following combination of characters: antennal toruli abutting or very nearly abutting anterior clypeal margin; oblique mesopleural sulcus absent; four closed cells present on forewing; cinctus between abdominal pre- and postsclerites IV absent.

Comments

The males of the Dorylinae have a long history of treatment due to the conspicuousness and remarkable morphology of several constituent genera ( Dorylus , Aenictus, Anictogiton , the Eciton genus group). Indeed, the first male-based ant taxon described was Dorylus helvolus (L., 1764). The concept of the Dorylinae has shifted greatly over the past two hundred years; a very recent molecular phylogeny ( Brady et al. 2014) has redefined the Dorylinae in a broad sense, including the formerly accepted subfamilies (as of Bolton 2003) Aenictinae , Aenictogitoninae , Cerapachyinae , Ecitoninae , and Leptanilloidinae, which themselves include several family-level synonyms. Little further will be said of the Dorylinae here as a generic revision of the subfamily is being prepared which will treat both males and females, and which will significantly clarify the generic limits of this diverse subfamily (M.L. Boroweic, in prep.).