Trichomyrmex destructor ( Jerdon, 1851 )

Sharaf, Mostafa R., Fisher, Brian L., Collingwood, Cedric A. & Aldawood, Abdulrahman S., 2017, Ant fauna (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) of the Socotra Archipelago (Yemen): zoogeography, distribution and description of a new species, Journal of Natural History (J. Nat. Hist.) 51 (5 - 6), pp. 317-378 : 363-365

Trichomyrmex destructor ( Jerdon, 1851)

( Figure 25 (a–c))

Atta destructor Jerdon, 1851: 105 (w.) India. Indomalaya.

Diagnosis

Worker. Mandibles with three strong teeth; eyes relatively small, with four to six ommatidia in longest row; scapes when laid straight back from their insertions reaching posterior margin of head in smallest workers but falling short of margin in larger individuals; mesosoma in profile with promesonotum convex and metanotal groove impressed; petiolar node in dorsal view globular to subglobular; propodeal dorsum finely transversely striolate. Head, mesosoma, petiole and postpetiole uniformly shining yellow or dull brownish yellow; gaster dark brown to blackish brown, with a conspicuous yellowish area mediobasally.

Material examined

Yemen, Socotra Island, W. Sakhalof, 27 April 2014, 48 m, (M. R. Sharaf leg.), 12.63311°N, 54.05632°E (15 w, KSMA); Yemen, Socotra Island, Himihil Protectorate, 23 April 2014, 330 m, (M. R. Sharaf leg.), 12.58204°N, 54.29057°E (1 w, KSMA); Yemen, Socotra Island, Haydibo, Erheno, 19 April 2014, 33 m, (M. R. Sharaf leg.), 12.65023°N, 54.04016°E (3 w, KSMA); Yemen, Socotra Island, W. Ayhift, 20 April 2014, 38 m, (M. R. Sharaf leg.), 12.61906° N, 53.94005°E (13 w, KSMA); Yemen, Socotra Island, Dehejamo, 22 April 2014, 563 m, (M. R. Sharaf leg.), 12.59049°N, 54.05205°E (5 w, KSMA); Yemen, Socotra Island, Lehanoh, 22 April 2014 ,931 m, (M. R. Sharaf leg.), 12.57583°N, 54.04836°E (1 w, CASC) .

Geographic range

A widespread invasive species originally described from India and occurring in tropical and subtropical regions of the world ( Wetterer 2009b), supposedly spread from central Asia west to north Africa ( Forel 1909; Sharaf 2006), southern Europe ( Ruzsky 1907) and the Arabian Peninsula ( Collingwood 1985; Collingwood and Agosti 1996). In the USA it is reported from Key West and Tampa ( Deyrup et al. 2000).

Ecological and biological notes

Trichomyrmex destructor is one of the most successful invasive species on Socotra Island, occupying diverse habitats. It was found nesting directly in soil under a rock. Several workers were found in leaf litter under Eragrostis eragrostis (L.) ( Poaceae ), where the soil was dry and rich in organic material. Several individuals were nesting under a rock in very moist, compact, clay soil. A nest was found under the bark of a dead rotten log located on a mountainside where a small stream was draining a mountain crest surrounded by diverse plant communities. Another nest series was found in leaf litter under a tree of Ficus cordata Thunb (Moraceae) .

Figures

Figure 25. Trichomyrmex destructor. (a) Body in profile. (b) Head in full-face view, CASENT0746624, AntWeb.org, (Zach Lieberman). (c) Distribution map, blue circles from recent records, red circles from Collingwood et al. (2004).