Dinoponera
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''Dinoponera'' is a strictly
South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the southe ...
n
genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...
of
ant Ants are eusocial insects of the family Formicidae and, along with the related wasps and bees, belong to the order Hymenoptera. Ants evolved from vespoid wasp ancestors in the Cretaceous period. More than 13,800 of an estimated total of ...
in the
subfamily In biological classification, a subfamily (Latin: ', plural ') is an auxiliary (intermediate) taxonomic rank, next below family but more inclusive than genus. Standard nomenclature rules end subfamily botanical names with "-oideae", and zoologi ...
Ponerinae Ponerinae is a subfamily of ants in the Poneromorph subfamilies group, with about 1,600 species in 47 extant genera, including ''Dinoponera gigantea'' - one of the world's largest species of ant. Mated workers have replaced the queen as the fun ...
, commonly called tocandiras or giant Amazonian ants. These ants are generally less well known than ''
Paraponera clavata ''Paraponera clavata'' is a species of ant, commonly known as the bullet ant, named for its extremely painful sting. It inhabits humid lowland rainforests in Central and South America. Etymology The specific epithet of the ant, ', means "club- ...
'', the bullet ant, yet ''Dinoponera'' females may surpass in total body length, making them among the largest ants in the world.


Names

''Dinoponera'' (tocandira ants) are known as piata in many Tucanoan languages.


Species

* ''
Dinoponera australis ''Dinoponera australis'' is a species of ant notable for its lack of distinct queen caste. Subspecies ''Dinoponera australis'' is divided into three subspecies: * ''Dinoponera australis australis'' Emery, 1901 * ''Dinoponera australis bucki' ...
'' Emery, 1901 * ''
Dinoponera hispida ''Dinoponera hispida'' (''hispida'', from the Latin ''hispidus'': bristle, referring to the conspicuous bristle-like setae covering the body) is a queenless species of ants in the subfamily Ponerinae. The species is known only from the type lo ...
'' Lenhart, Dash & Mackay, 2013 * ''
Dinoponera gigantea ''Dinoponera gigantea'' is a species of ant belonging to the family Formicidae. Names It is called taramãçu or uitsi in the Kwaza language of Rondônia, Brazil. Description ''Dinoponera gigantea'' is one of the world's largest species of a ...
'' Perty, 1833 * ''
Dinoponera longipes ''Dinoponera longipes'' is a queenless species of ants in the subfamily Ponerinae. Distribution ''Dinoponera longipe''s have been collected in eastern Peru in the departments of Loreto, Amazonas, Huánuco, San Martín and Pasco, as well as ...
'' Emery, 1901 * ''
Dinoponera lucida ''Dinoponera lucida'' is a large queenless species of ant in the subfamily Ponerinae. The species, endemic to Brazil, is threatened by habitat destruction. Workers range from 27 to 30 mm in body length, which is slightly larger than the r ...
'' Emery, 1901 * ''
Dinoponera mutica ''Dinoponera mutica'' is a queenless species of ants in the subfamily Ponerinae. Description ''Dinoponera mutica'' workers can be identified by their smooth and shiny integument with a bluish luster, a rounded pronotal corner lacking a tooth- ...
'' Emery, 1901 * ''
Dinoponera quadriceps ''Dinoponera quadriceps'' is a queenless species of ants in the subfamily Ponerinae. The species, known from Brazil, is similar to '' Dinoponera mutica'' and uses venom for subduing large live prey and defense. Its venom could be of use to the ...
'' Kempf, 1971 * ''
Dinoponera snellingi ''Dinoponera snellingi'' (named after Roy Snelling) is a queenless species of ants in the subfamily Ponerinae. The species is known only from type locality in Campo Grande, Brazil. Description Workers are unknown. Male specimens of this spe ...
'' Lenhart, Dash & Mackay, 2013


Distribution

''Dinoponera'' is a strictly South American genus, and has been found from montane
rainforest Rainforests are characterized by a closed and continuous tree canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforest can be classified as tropical rainforest or temperate rainfores ...
on the eastern slope of the
Andes The Andes, Andes Mountains or Andean Mountains (; ) are the longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range is long, wide (widest between 18°S – 20°S ...
in
Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal , national_motto = "Fi ...
,
Ecuador Ecuador ( ; ; Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechua: ''Ikwadur Ripuwlika''; Shuar: ''Eku ...
and
Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...
to
savannah A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland-grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the Canopy (forest), canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to rea ...
and lowland rainforest in
Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
,
Guyana Guyana ( or ), officially the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern mainland of South America. Guyana is an indigenous word which means "Land of Many Waters". The capital city is Georgetown. Guyana is bordered by the ...
, south through
Bolivia , image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg , flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center , flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...
,
Paraguay Paraguay (; ), officially the Republic of Paraguay ( es, República del Paraguay, links=no; gn, Tavakuairetã Paraguái, links=si), is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to th ...
and
Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
. ''
Dinoponera australis ''Dinoponera australis'' is a species of ant notable for its lack of distinct queen caste. Subspecies ''Dinoponera australis'' is divided into three subspecies: * ''Dinoponera australis australis'' Emery, 1901 * ''Dinoponera australis bucki' ...
'', known from Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay and Argentina, has the widest known range of all ''Dinoponera'' species.


Size

''Dinoponera'' contains one of the largest species of ants in the world, with female ''
Dinoponera gigantea ''Dinoponera gigantea'' is a species of ant belonging to the family Formicidae. Names It is called taramãçu or uitsi in the Kwaza language of Rondônia, Brazil. Description ''Dinoponera gigantea'' is one of the world's largest species of a ...
'' specimens measuring in length. Size is the most obvious character distinguishing ''Dinoponera'' from other genera. The only other ants with a worker caste approaching this size are ''
Paraponera clavata ''Paraponera clavata'' is a species of ant, commonly known as the bullet ant, named for its extremely painful sting. It inhabits humid lowland rainforests in Central and South America. Etymology The specific epithet of the ant, ', means "club- ...
'' (the bullet ant) and the larger ''
Pachycondyla ''Pachycondyla'' is a ponerine genus of ants found in the Neotropics. Distribution ''Pachycondyla'' is currently distributed from southern United States to northern Argentina, but some fossil species (e.g. '' P. eocenica'' and '' P. lutzi'') a ...
'' such as '' P. crassinoda'', '' P. impressa'' and '' P. villosa''. ''Paraponera clavata'' is easily separated by its anvil-shaped petiole with a spine on the ventral surface, highly sculptured body and deep antennal scrobes. ''Pachycondyla'' is regarded as the sister taxa to ''Dinoponera''. ''Dinoponera'', in addition to their size, are distinguishable from ''Pachycondyla'' by the presence of two laterally projecting clypeal teeth and rows of spines on the
pygidium The pygidium (plural pygidia) is the posterior body part or shield of crustaceans and some other arthropods, such as insects and the extinct trilobites. In groups other than insects, it contains the anus and, in females, the ovipositor. It is compo ...
and hypopygidium.


Reproduction

''Dinoponera'' is one of the roughly 10 ponerine genera in which some species have secondarily lost the typical morphologically specialized queen caste for a reproductive worker known as a
gamergate Gamergate may refer to: * Gamergate (ant), a worker ant that can store sperm and reproduce sexually * Gamergate (harassment campaign), targeting women in the video game industry * Lt. Gamergate, a character in the ''Adventure Time'' episode " Den ...
. Conflict over dominance is intense in colonies with younger workers usually joining a linear hierarchy of one to five workers depending on colony size. The gamergate, or alpha female has the highest ranking. The alpha female mates with non-nestmate males at night at the entrance of the nest. After copulation the female bites through the male's gaster to release herself and pulls out the genital capsule which acts as a temporary sperm plug. After mating the female is unreceptive to other males and remains monandrous. The gamergate maintains dominance with ritualized behaviors such as antennal boxing and biting, "blocking", as well as gaster rubbing and curling. Alpha females may "sting smear" a competing female with secretions from the
Dufour's gland Dufour's gland is an abdominal gland of certain insects, part of the anatomy of the ovipositor or sting apparatus in female members of Apocrita. The diversification of Hymenoptera took place in the Cretaceous and the gland may have developed at a ...
, triggering the lower ranking workers to immobilize the marked female. Subordinate females (beta, gamma, or delta) may produce unfertilized eggs but these are usually consumed by the alpha female in a form of " queen policing". Males are born throughout most of the year in tropical species, however ''Dinoponera australis'' which lives in the more temperate south was found to only produce males in May–July. When the alpha declines reproductively or dies, she is replaced by a high-ranking worker.


Foraging

Workers lower in the hierarchy forage individually for food items on the substrate and do not recruit other nestmates to assist with food transport. Although foraging workers do not recruit nestmates, found a positive feedback between incoming food and stimulation of new foragers as well as task partitioning once food was brought into the nest. Lower ranking females processed protein resources while higher ranking females handled small food pieces and distributed them to the
larvae A larva (; plural larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle. The ...
. Fourcassié & Oliviera (2002) found ''Dinoponera gigantea'' foraging to be concentrated in the early morning and afternoon but did not sample at night. observed the highest activity at night in ''Dinoponera longipes''. ''Dinoponera quadriceps'' has a marked seasonal pattern in activity. It is most active in May–August, the late rainy season to early dry season in the semiarid Caatinga. Activity was strongly negatively correlated to temperature and positively correlated to prey abundance. The diets of both ''Dinoponera gigantea'' and ''Dinoponera quadriceps'' have been shown to be predominantly scavenged
invertebrate Invertebrates are a paraphyletic group of animals that neither possess nor develop a vertebral column (commonly known as a ''backbone'' or ''spine''), derived from the notochord. This is a grouping including all animals apart from the chordate ...
s, but include live prey, seeds and fruits. state that the taxonomic diversity of prey is comparable to other tropical ponerines, but has an optimal prey size of 2–3 cm in ''Dinoponera''. Diet seems to be very similar across the genus, regardless of habitat.


Predators and Pathogens

Despite their large size and strong
venom Venom or zootoxin is a type of toxin produced by an animal that is actively delivered through a wound by means of a bite, sting, or similar action. The toxin is delivered through a specially evolved ''venom apparatus'', such as fangs or a sti ...
, ''Dinoponera'' are likely preyed on by many vertebrate and invertebrate species across South America. Like many other ant species, ''Dinoponera'' can be infected by the
entomopathogenic fungi An entomopathogenic fungus is a fungus that can kill or seriously disable insects. Typical life cycle These fungi usually attach to the external body surface of insects in the form of microscopic spores (usually asexual, mitosporic spores also ...
'' Cordyceps'' sp. discovered a ''
Kapala A kapala (Sanskrit for "skull") is a skull cup used as a ritual implement (bowl) in both Hindu Tantra and Buddhist Tantra (Vajrayana). Especially in Tibet, they are often carved or elaborately mounted with precious metals and jewels. Etymo ...
'' sp. eucharitid wasp emerging from the puparia of ''Dinoponera lucida''.


Venom

For subduing large live prey and defense, workers possess a sting that has been known to cause severe pain lasting up to 48 hours. Lymphadenopathy, edema,
tachycardia Tachycardia, also called tachyarrhythmia, is a heart rate that exceeds the normal resting rate. In general, a resting heart rate over 100 beats per minute is accepted as tachycardia in adults. Heart rates above the resting rate may be normal ( ...
and fresh blood appearing in human victim feces are common symptoms. In some the
venom sac Venom or zootoxin is a type of toxin produced by an animal that is actively delivered through a wound by means of a bite, sting, or similar action. The toxin is delivered through a specially evolved ''venom apparatus'', such as fangs or a sti ...
is empty. Workers may have 60–75 unique proteinaceous components in the venom. The convoluted gland within the venom system of ''Dinoponera australis'' has been found to possess close similarities to those of
vespine A wasp is any insect of the narrow-waisted suborder Apocrita of the order Hymenoptera which is neither a bee nor an ant; this excludes the broad-waisted sawflies (Symphyta), which look somewhat like wasps, but are in a separate suborder. Th ...
wasps. The contents of ''Dinoponera australis'' venom have been found to be similar to those of ''
Pachycondyla ''Pachycondyla'' is a ponerine genus of ants found in the Neotropics. Distribution ''Pachycondyla'' is currently distributed from southern United States to northern Argentina, but some fossil species (e.g. '' P. eocenica'' and '' P. lutzi'') a ...
'' spp. Due to the high diversity of compounds and systemic effects, venom of ''Dinoponera'' could be of use to the pharmaceutical industry. For instance, demonstrated in mice that venom from ''Dinoponera quadriceps'' had antinociceptive properties. The authors note that the local population of northeast Brazil uses dry crushed ''Dinoponera quadriceps'' ants to treat earaches, and the stings of live ants are administered for back pain and rheumatism.


Colonies

Colonies In modern parlance, a colony is a territory subject to a form of foreign rule. Though dominated by the foreign colonizers, colonies remain separate from the administration of the original country of the colonizers, the '' metropolitan state'' ...
vary in size depending upon species, but generally consist of fewer than 100 individuals. ''Dinoponera australis'' colonies have an average of 14 workers (range 3–37), ''Dinoponera gigantea'' average 41 workers (range 30–96) and ''Dinoponera quadriceps'' has the largest colonies with an average of 80 workers (range 26–238). New colonies are founded by fission, a process in which a beta female is fertilized in the natal nest. This new alpha female then leaves the nest with a cohort of workers to found an incipient colony, sometimes employing
tandem running Tandem running is a pair movement coordination observed in ants and termites. In ants, tandem running is used for social learning, by which one ant leads another native ant from the nest to the food source it has found. Tandem running is also us ...
.


Nests

The nest consists of large chambers and tunnels in the soil possibly with an earthen mound and can be 0.10–1.2 m deep. Nests are deeper in ''Dinoponera australis'' and ''Dinoponera quadriceps'' than in ''Dinoponera gigantea'', suggests that deeper nests are a possible adaptation to seasons and aridity. ''Dinoponera gigantea'' nests may have up to eight entrances and can be weakly
polydomous This is a glossary of terms used in the descriptions of ants. A B D E F G H M N O P Q R S T U W See also ...
, whereas 1–30 openings with an average of 11 were recorded for ''Dinoponera longipes''. Nesting density and spatial distribution varies depending on habitat. Density ranges from 15–40 nests per ha to 80 nests per ha. measured a spacing between nests for ''Dinoponera longipes'' with a median of 35 m ( n=22, range 14–69.5 m). ''Dinoponera australis'' and ''Dinoponera gigantea'' usually nest at the base of trees. Observations of ''Dinoponera quadriceps'' nests show that in more arid
Caatinga Caatinga (, ) is a type of semi-arid tropical vegetation, and an ecoregion characterized by this vegetation in interior northeastern Brazil. The name "Caatinga" is a Tupi word meaning "white forest" or "white vegetation" (''caa'' = forest, v ...
and
Cerrado The ''Cerrado'' (, ) is a vast ecoregion of tropical savanna in eastern Brazil, particularly in the states of Goiás, Mato Grosso do Sul, Mato Grosso, Tocantins, Minas Gerais, and the Federal District. The core areas of the Cerrado biome are the ...
habitats, nests are predominantly constructed under trees, whereas in
Atlantic forest The Atlantic Forest ( pt, Mata Atlântica) is a South American forest that extends along the Atlantic coast of Brazil from Rio Grande do Norte state in the northeast to Rio Grande do Sul state in the south and inland as far as Paraguay and th ...
60% of nests were 3 m away from any tree.


References

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *


External links

* *
Tree of Life Web Project The Tree of Life Web Project is an Internet project providing information about the diversity and phylogeny of life on Earth. This collaborative peer reviewed project began in 1995, and is written by biologists from around the world. The site ...

Dinoponera
*
Catalogue of Life The Catalogue of Life is an online database that provides an index of known species of animals, plants, fungi, and microorganisms. It was created in 2001 as a partnership between the global Species 2000 and the American Integrated Taxonomic I ...

Dinoponera
* *
Animal Diversity Web Animal Diversity Web (ADW) is an online database that collects the natural history, classification, species characteristics, conservation biology, and distribution information on thousands of species of animals. The website includes thousands ...

Dinoponera
* {{Taxonbar, from=Q290819 Ponerinae Ant genera Hymenoptera of South America Taxa named by Julius Roger Taxa described in 1861