''Dolichoderus pustulatus'' is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals 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 22,0 ...

in the subfamily

Dolichoderinae Dolichoderinae is a subfamily of ants, which includes species such as the Argentine ant (''Linepithema humile''), the erratic ant, the odorous house ant, and the cone ant. The subfamily presents a great diversity of species throughout the w ...

and is found in North America.

Description

In the south of its range, the head, antennae,

metasoma The metasoma is the posterior part of the body, or tagma, of arthropods whose body is composed of three parts, the other two being the prosoma and the mesosoma. In insects, it contains most of the digestive tract, respiratory system, and circula ...

and legs of workers of this species are orangish-brown while the gaster is a darker colour. There are sometimes light coloured spots on the first and second segments of the gaster and the antennae and legs become darker as the ant gets older. In the north of its range this ant is more often a single shade of reddish-brown or dark brown.Identification and Nesting Sites of North American Species of Dolichoderus
/ref> Other distinguishing characteristics include the top of the head, the

and

propodeum The propodeum or propodium is the first abdominal segment in Apocrita Hymenoptera ( wasps, bees and ants). It is fused with the thorax to form the mesosoma. It is a single large sclerite, not subdivided, and bears a pair of spiracles. It is ...

, being covered by shallow puncture marks. There are a few short hairs near the apex of the gaster and on the legs but mostly this species is hairless. The dorsal surface of the propodeum is nearly one and a half times longer than it is wide. The

integument In biology, an integument is the tissue surrounding an organism's body or an organ within, such as skin, a husk, shell, germ or rind. Etymology The term is derived from ''integumentum'', which is Latin for "a covering". In a transferred, or ...

of the petiole and the gaster is smooth and reflective in bright light.

Distribution

This species is found in northern United States and Southern Canada east of the

Rocky Mountains The Rocky Mountains, also known as the Rockies, are a major mountain range and the largest mountain system in North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch in straight-line distance from the northernmost part of western Canada, to New Mexico in ...

. It has been recorded from Nova Scotia westward to Illinois and Oklahoma, in New Jersey and southward to Florida and Mississippi.

Ecology

This species is found in

fen A fen is a type of peat-accumulating wetland fed by mineral-rich ground or surface water. It is one of the main types of wetlands along with marshes, swamps, and bogs. Bogs and fens, both peat-forming ecosystems, are also known as mires. T ...

prairie Prairies are ecosystems considered part of the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome by ecologists, based on similar temperate climates, moderate rainfall, and a composition of grasses, herbs, and shrubs, rather than trees, as the ...

s, glades and the edges of woods. The nests are hidden in soil among the roots of plants. This species has somewhat smaller

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' ...

than ''

Dolichoderus mariae ''Dolichoderus mariae'' is a species of ant in the subfamily Dolichoderinae and is found in North America. Description This ant is distinctively coloured with the head, antennae, thorax, legs and petiole and the anterior part of the first abdom ...

'' and '' Dolichoderus taschenbergi''. Nests are either built under leaf litter or a thin-walled carton is made from chewed vegetable matter and built around blades of grass. The entrances to the nests are short tubes made from the same substance and look much like the spouts of little

teapot A teapot is a vessel used for steeping tea leaves or a herbal mix in boiling or near-boiling water, and for serving the resulting infusion which is called tea. It is one of the core components of teaware. Dry tea is available either in tea b ...

References

External links

* {{Taxonbar, from=Q3913815 Dolichoderus Hymenoptera of North America Insects described in 1886