''Notoncus'' is an Australian
genus
Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial n ...
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 ...
s in the
subfamily Formicinae
The Formicinae are a subfamily within the Formicidae containing ants of moderate evolutionary development.
Formicines retain some primitive features, such as the presence of cocoons around pupae, the presence of ocelli in workers, and littl ...
.
The genus is known from
Australia (one species is also known from
Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea ( tpi, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niugini; ho, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niu Gini), is a country i ...
), where the ants nest in the soil or on the ground under stones and logs in forested areas. The ants are also common in gardens and parks.
Species
The genus includes the following six species:
* ''
Notoncus capitatus''
Forel, 1915
* ''
Notoncus ectatommoides''
(Forel, 1892)
* ''
Notoncus enormis''
Szabo, 1910
* ''
Notoncus gilberti''
Forel, 1895
* ''
Notoncus hickmani''
Clark, 1930
* ''
Notoncus spinisquamis''
(Andre, 1896)
References
Formicinae
Ant genera
Hymenoptera of Australia
{{formicinae-stub