''Tetraponera'' is a
genus
Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...
of
ants
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 botanical subfamily names with "-oideae", and zo ...
Pseudomyrmecinae
Pseudomyrmecinae is a small subfamily of ants containing three genera of slender, large-eyed arboreal ants, predominantly tropical or subtropical
The subtropical zones or subtropics are geographical zone, geographical and Köppen climate cla ...
that are commonly known as slender ants and are characterized by their
arboreal
Arboreal locomotion is the locomotion of animals in trees. In habitats in which trees are present, animals have evolved to move in them. Some animals may scale trees only occasionally (scansorial), but others are exclusively arboreal. The hab ...
nature and slender bodies. The 96 described
species
A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...
of ''Tetraponera'' all of which live in hollow structures of plants and trees, such as thorns or branches; these hosts are known as
myrmecophyte
Myrmecophytes (; literally "ant-plant") are plants that live in a mutualistic association with a colony of ants. There are over 100 different genera of myrmecophytes. These plants possess structural adaptations in the form of domatia where ants ...
s. ''Tetraponera'' species are closely related to the New World genus of ants ''
Pseudomyrmex
''Pseudomyrmex'' is a genus of stinging, wasp-like ants in the subfamily Pseudomyrmecinae. They are large-eyed, slender ants, found mainly in tropical and subtropical regions of the New World.
Distribution and habitat
''Pseudomyrmex'' is predomi ...
'', but differ in their relationships with host plants.
Mutualisms and behaviour
''Tetraponera'' species are generally defined by the myrmecophytes they inhabit and the
mutualistic relationship they share.
[
] These host plants always have hollow thorns or branches in which the
ant
Ants are Eusociality, eusocial insects of the Family (biology), family Formicidae and, along with the related wasps and bees, belong to the Taxonomy (biology), order Hymenoptera. Ants evolved from Vespoidea, vespoid wasp ancestors in the Cre ...
s can live and form a
colony
A colony is a territory subject to a form of foreign rule, which rules the territory and its indigenous peoples separated from the foreign rulers, the colonizer, and their ''metropole'' (or "mother country"). This separated rule was often orga ...
. Also, the myrmecophytes provide energy rich food sources such as
extrafloral nectar and/or
food bodies. All ''Tetraponera'' species have gut
symbiont
Symbiosis (Ancient Greek : living with, companionship < : together; and ''bíōsis'': living) is any type of a close and long-term biological interaction, between two organisms of different species. The two organisms, termed symbionts, can fo ...
s that allow them to digest
amino acid
Amino acids are organic compounds that contain both amino and carboxylic acid functional groups. Although over 500 amino acids exist in nature, by far the most important are the 22 α-amino acids incorporated into proteins. Only these 22 a ...
-deficient food provided by their host plants; these
gut bacteria
Gut microbiota, gut microbiome, or gut flora are the microorganisms, including bacteria, archaea, fungi, and viruses, that live in the digestive tracts of animals. The gastrointestinal metagenome is the aggregate of all the genomes of the g ...
are especially important for the species that only survive on the myrmecophyte-provided foods.
All ''Tetraponera'' species provide protection for their host plants through aggressive nature towards other insects and trimming leaves/branches of neighbouring plants. Living in hollow structures of the plants allows the ants to detect vibrations when larger insects land on the plant, or workers on patrol visually detect smaller intruders. Once detected, sophisticated
pheromone
A pheromone () is a secreted or excreted chemical factor that triggers a social response in members of the same species. Pheromones are chemicals capable of acting like hormones outside the body of the secreting individual, to affect the behavio ...
systems allow the ants to quickly outnumber and overpower any invaders. Most insect invaders are killed and discarded by ''Tetraponera'' workers such as
caterpillars
Caterpillars ( ) are the larval stage of members of the order Lepidoptera (the insect order comprising butterflies and moths).
As with most common names, the application of the word is arbitrary, since the larvae of sawflies (suborder Sym ...
and
aphids
Aphids are small sap-sucking insects in the Taxonomic rank, family Aphididae. Common names include greenfly and blackfly, although individuals within a species can vary widely in color. The group includes the fluffy white Eriosomatinae, woolly ...
, but some are killed and consumed. The insects that take the most time and effort to kill are generally consumed; these are mostly
katydids
Insects in the family Tettigoniidae are commonly called katydids (especially in North America) or bush crickets. They have previously been known as "long-horned grasshoppers". More than 8,000 species are known. Part of the suborder Ensifera, the ...
or
leaf beetles
The beetle family Chrysomelidae, commonly known as leaf beetles, includes over 37,000 (and probably at least 50,000) species in more than 2,500 genera, making it one of the largest and most commonly encountered of all beetle families. Numerous su ...
.
As well as assaulting and killing insects that attack their host plant, ''Tetraponera'' ants will attack any
mammals
A mammal () is a vertebrate animal of the class Mammalia (). Mammals are characterised by the presence of milk-producing mammary glands for feeding their young, a broad neocortex region of the brain, fur or hair, and three middle e ...
that present a threat. Inflicting the mammals with painful stings will usually deter them from attacking the plant.
In some arboreal ant species, not just ''Tetraponera'', a third partner in ant-myrmecophyte mutualisms is
hemiptera
Hemiptera (; ) is an order of insects, commonly called true bugs, comprising more than 80,000 species within groups such as the cicadas, aphids, planthoppers, leafhoppers, assassin bugs, bed bugs, and shield bugs. They range in size from ...
n
trophobionts. These insects provide a possible third source of food for the ants, in return the ants feed and “nurture” the Hemiptera inside their
colonies
A colony is a territory subject to a form of foreign rule, which rules the territory and its indigenous peoples separated from the foreign rulers, the colonizer, and their '' metropole'' (or "mother country"). This separated rule was often or ...
.
Distribution
''Tetraponera'' species are found commonly in the warmer regions of
Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...
,
Asia
Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...
, and
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
. Different species are associated with different plant species. The most common myrmecophytes for ''Tetraponera'' are
acacias
''Acacia'', commonly known as wattles or acacias, is a genus of about of shrubs and trees in the subfamily Mimosoideae of the pea family Fabaceae. Initially, it comprised a group of plant species native to Africa, South America, and Australa ...
, but the wide variety of hosts for this genus include
bamboo
Bamboos are a diverse group of mostly evergreen perennial plant, perennial flowering plants making up the subfamily (biology), subfamily Bambusoideae of the grass family Poaceae. Giant bamboos are the largest members of the grass family, in th ...
s and
lianas
A liana is a long-Plant stem, stemmed Woody plant, woody vine that is rooted in the soil at ground level and uses trees, as well as other means of vertical support, to climb up to the Canopy (biology), canopy in search of direct sunlight. T ...
. ''Tetraponera'' ants trim neighbouring plants to prevent any intrusion of other ants or caterpillars from those plants and to reduce
resource competition
refers to all the materials available in our environment which are technologically accessible, economically feasible and culturally sustainable and help us to satisfy our needs and wants. Resources can broadly be classified according to their a ...
for their
host
A host is a person responsible for guests at an event or for providing hospitality during it.
Host may also refer to:
Places
* Host, Pennsylvania, a village in Berks County
* Host Island, in the Wilhelm Archipelago, Antarctica
People
* ...
. ''Tetraponera'' species only leave their myrmecophyte to start a new colony on a different host; a
queen
Queen most commonly refers to:
* Queen regnant, a female monarch of a kingdom
* Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king
* Queen (band), a British rock band
Queen or QUEEN may also refer to:
Monarchy
* Queen dowager, the widow of a king
* Q ...
and a number of
workers leave the old host plant to allow the colony to continue to expand.
Lifecycle and castes
''Tetraponera'', like most ants, has one or a few queens that are the only females to
reproduce
Reproduction (or procreation or breeding) is the biological process by which new individual organisms – "offspring" – are produced from their "parent" or parents. There are two forms of reproduction: asexual and sexual.
In asexual reprod ...
in a colony. The
sterile
Sterile or sterility may refer to:
*Asepsis, a state of being free from biological contaminants
* Sterile (archaeology), a sediment deposit which contains no evidence of human activity
*Sterilization (microbiology), any process that eliminates or ...
workers are all females that forage for food and defend the colony. Males are produced only during certain times of the year and disperse to mate with virgins queens from other colonies. Since ants are
haplodiploid
Haplodiploidy is a sex-determination system in which males develop from unfertilized eggs and are haploid, and females develop from fertilized eggs and are diploid. Haplodiploidy is sometimes called arrhenotoky.
Haplodiploidy determines the se ...
, they can control what sex their offspring will be; an unfertilised egg will become a male, while a fertilised egg will be female. This reliably restricts the production of male
alates to the species' mating season, when the winged virgin queens and males fly from their home colonies to mate and start new colonies.
The eggs produced by the queen hatch into
larvae
A larva (; : larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into their next life stage. Animals with indirect developmental biology, development such as insects, some arachnids, amphibians, or cnidarians typical ...
which are cared for inside the colony, protected from any predators by the workers. The amount of care each female larva receives determines its fate as a worker or a new queen; all males are drones. When a new colony is formed, eggs are initially produced at a low rate, but this quickly increases in the second to fourth years, to ensure enough workers are produced to protect and provide for the growing colony.
Species
*''
T. aethiops''
Smith, 1877
*''
T. aitkenii''
(Forel, 1902)
*''
T. allaborans''
(Walker, 1859)
*''
T. amargina''
Xu & Chai, 2004
*''
T. ambigua''
(Emery, 1895)
*''
T. andrei''
(Mayr, 1895)
*''
T. anthracina''
(Santschi, 1910)
*''
T. apiculata''
Ward, 2001
*''
T. atra''
Donisthorpe, 1949
*''
T. attenuata''
Smith, 1877
*''
T. avia''
Ward, 2001
*''
T. bifoveolata''
(Mayr, 1895)
*''
T. binghami''
(Forel, 1902)
*''
T. bita''
Ward, 2001
*''
T. brevis''
Ward, 2001
*''
T. buops''
Ward, 2001
*''
T. caffra''
(Santschi, 1914)
*''
T. clypeata''
(Emery, 1886)
*''
T. concava''
Xu & Chai, 2004
*''
T. conica''
Ward, 2001
*''
T. connectens''
Ward, 2001
*''
T. continua''
(Forel, 1907)
*''
T. convexa''
Xu & Chai, 2004
*''
T. cortina''
Ward, 2022
*''
T. crassiuscula''
(Emery, 1900)
*''
T. diana''
(Santschi, 1911)
*''
T. difficilis''
(Emery, 1900)
*''
T. dispar''
Ward, 2022
*''
T. elegans''
Ward, 2022
*''
T. emeryi''
(Forel, 1911)
*''
T. erythraea''
(Emery, 1895)
*†''
T. europaea''
Dlussky, 2009
*''
T. exactor''
Ward, 2022
*''
T. exasciata''
(Forel, 1892)
*''
T. extenuata''
Ward, 2001
*''
T. fictrix''
(Forel, 1897)
*''
T. furcata''
Xu & Chai, 2004
*''
T. furtiva''
Ward, 2022
*''
T. gerdae''
(Stitz, 1911)
*''
T. grandidieri''
(Forel, 1891)
*†''
T. groehni''
Dlussky, 2009
*''
T. hespera''
Ward, 2009
*''
T. hirsuta''
Ward, 2009
*''
T. hysterica''
(Forel, 1892)
*''
T. inermis''
Ward, 2009
*''
T. insularis''
Ward, 2022
*''
T. inversinodis''
Ward, 2001
*†''
T. klebsi''
(Wheeler, 1915)
*''
T. kosi''
Ward, 2022
*†''
T. lacrimarum''
(Wheeler, 1915)
*''
T. laeviceps''
(Smith, 1859)
*''
T. latifrons''
(Emery, 1912)
*''
T. liengmei''
(Forel, 1894)
*''
T. longula''
(Emery, 1895)
*''
T. manangotra''
Ward, 2009
*''
T. mandibularis''
(Emery, 1895)
*''
T. mayri''
(Forel, 1901)
*''
T. merita''
Ward, 2009
*''
T. microcarpa''
Wu & Wang, 1990
*''
T. mimula''
Ward, 2001
*''
T. mocquerysi''
(André, 1890)
*''
T. modesta''
(Smith, 1860)
*''
T. morondaviensis''
(Forel, 1891)
*''
T. natalensis''
(Smith, 1858)
*''
T. nigra''
(Jerdon, 1851)
*''
T. nitida''
(Smith, 1860)
*''
T. nixa''
Ward, 2001
*''
T. nodosa''
Ward, 2001
*''
T. notabilis''
Ward, 2001
*†''
T. ocellata''
(Mayr, 1868)
*†''
T. oligocenica''
(Théobald, 1937)
*''
T. ophtalmica''
(Emery, 1912)
*''
T. parops''
Ward, 2006
*''
T. pedana''
Ward, 2022
*''
T. penzigi''
(Mayr, 1907)
*''
T. periyarensis''
Bharti & Akbar, 2014
*''
T. perlonga''
Santschi, 1928
*''
T. phragmatica''
Ward, 2006
*''
T. pilosa''
(Smith, 1858)
*''
T. polita''
Ward, 2001
*''
T. protensa''
Xu & Chai, 2004
*''
T. pumila''
Ward, 2022
*''
T. punctulata''
Smith, 1877
*''
T. rakotonis''
(Forel, 1891)
*''
T. redacta''
Ward, 2022
*''
T. rotula''
Ward, 2001
*''
T. rufonigra''
(Jerdon, 1851)
*''
T. sahlbergii''
(Forel, 1887)
*''
T. schulthessi''
(Santschi, 1915)
*''
T. setosa''
Ward, 2022
*†''
T. simplex''
(Mayr, 1868)
*''
T. tessmanni''
(Stitz, 1910)
*''
T. tucurua''
Ward, 2001
*''
T. variegata''
(Forel, 1895)
*''
T. vivax''
Ward, 2001
*''
T. volucris''
Ward, 2001
References
* Borm, S.V., A. Buschinger, J. J. Boomsma and J. Billen. 2002. Tetraponera ants have gut symbionts related to nitrogen-fixing root-nodule bacteria. Biological Sciences. 269:2023-2027.
* Ward, P.S. 2001. Taxonomy, phylogeny and biogeography of the ant genus Tetraponera (Hymenoptera:Formicidae) in the Oriental and Australian regions Invertebrate Taxonomy. 15:589:665.
* Dejean, A., J. Orivel and C. Djieto-Lordon. 2008. The plant ant Tetraponera aethiops (Pseudomyrmecinae) protects its host myrmecophyte Barteria fistulosa (Passifloraceae) through aggressiveness and predation. 93:63-69.
* Australian Biological Resources and Study: Australian Faunal Directory. https://biodiversity.org.au/afd/taxa/Tetraponera
External links
*
*
{{Taxonbar, from=Q771402
Pseudomyrmecinae
Ant genera