Ash gray slave ant

Ash gray slave ant
	Ash gray slave ant ( Formica cinerea )
Systematics
Order :	Hymenoptera (Hymenoptera)
Family :	Ants (Formicidae)
Subfamily :	Scale ants (Formicinae)
Genre :	Wood ants ( Formica )
Type :	Ash gray slave ant
Scientific name
	Formica cinerea
	Mayr , 1853

The ash gray slave ant ( Formica cinerea ) from the subfamily of the scale ants (Formicinae) belongs to the genus of wood ants ( Formica ) and there to the subgenus of slave ants ( Serviformica ).

features

The workers are 6 to 8 millimeters tall, the queens up to 12 millimeters. Formica cinerea is black-gray in color, shiny silver and has reddish legs. This species can easily be confused with Formica fusca , Formica fuscocinerea and Formica selysi . The species of the cinerea species group are to be distinguished from other Serviformica species in addition to the particularly large eyes on the protruding hair on the back of the head. Differentiating the species is very difficult and only possible under a microscope. In Southeastern steppe areas there are also increased populations with reddish colored mesosomes . Such populations can also occur sporadically in Central Europe.

distribution and habitat

Formica cinerea lives all over Europe. It occurs from Spain to western Siberia and from Scandinavia to the Balkans . However, it is missing in Great Britain. It occurs everywhere in Germany, but it is only locally widespread, especially in western Germany. Its main area of distribution is in Germany in the east, in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania , Brandenburg , Saxony-Anhalt and Saxony .

Formica cinerea is a typical pioneer species of newly created, vegetation-free habitats such as B. gravel pits and opencast mines, naturally probably on sand and gravel banks of wild rivers, where they can reach enormous densities of up to one colony per 10 square meters with almost 2 exits per square meter. It also inhabits other xerothermal areas with sandy or gravelly soil, such as open sand dunes, beach areas and pine forests. It is absent in the case of continuously closed ground vegetation, even in warm, dry grasslands . Sunlit places are also used to build nests, but shady places are preferred. As a thermophilic species, it is mainly found in areas with a mild climate.

biology

The nests are simple ground nests. Ramps up to 30 cm long can form at the nest exits, similar to an "underground car park exit". This is sometimes followed by deepened trails that are up to 2 meters long, which then usually serve as a connection to other nests. The nest is founded claustrally . The swarming season extends from June to August. Formica cinerea feeds zoophag on insects and arachnids , but also trophobiotically on honeydew . She also hunts in the treetops, e.g. B. caterpillars. Formica cinerea hibernates from October to March. This species is very aggressive and is therefore rarely used as a host species by other ant species. In direct encounters in the habitat, however, it is inferior to forest ants ( Formica s. Str.) And avoids habitats populated by them. As an adaptation to open spaces, this species has good eyesight and can walk very quickly. Formica cinerea moves up to at least 100 meters from the nest.

The colonies are monogynous to moderately polygynous , with genetic studies showing great differences between different local populations.

Formica cinerea is a host species of the caterpillars of the Idas bluing Plebejus idas .

Danger

Formica cinerea is on the warning lists in many areas.

Systematics

Formica cinerea together with Formica fuscocinerea , Formica selysi , Formica georgica and Formica corsica form the Formica cinerea group within the slave ants.

Synonyms

The following names are more recent synonyms for Formica cinerea :

Formica cinerea var. Imitans Ruzky, 1902
Formica cinerea var. Armenica Ruzky, 1905
Formica cinerea var. Subrufoides Forel, 1913
Formica cinerea var. Cinereoglebaria Kulmaticky, 1922
Formica cinerea var. Iberica Finzi, 1928
Formica cinerea var. Italica Finzi, 1928
Formica cinerea var. Novaki Kratochvil, 1941
Formica balcanina Petrov & Collingwood, 1993

swell

Individual evidence

↑ ^a ^b ^c Bernhard Seifert : The ants of Central and Northern Europe . lutra Verlags- und Vertriebsgesellschaft, Görlitz / Tauer 2007, ISBN 978-3-936412-03-1

↑ Bernhard Seifert: Observe, determine ants. Naturbuch Verlag, Augsburg, 1996. ISBN 3-89440-170-2

↑ ^a ^b L. Gallé, L. Körmöczi, E. Hornung, J. Kerekes (1998): Structure of ant assemblages in a Middle-European successional sand-dune area. Tiscia 31: 19-28.

↑ ^a ^b ^c Seifert, B. 2002. A taxonomic revision of the Formica cinerea group (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Treatises and reports of the Natural History Museum Görlitz 74 (2): 245-272. ( Online ( Memento of the original from September 12, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this note .; PDF; 1.5 MB) @1@ 2

↑ Zhu, D., Chapuisat, M., Pamilo, P. (2003): Highly variable social organization of colonies in the ant Formica cinerea. Hereditas 139: 7-12. doi : 10.1111 / j.1601-5223.2003.01613.x

Web links

Formica cinerea in Fauna Europaea. Retrieved June 23, 2011

[seifert2007-1] Bernhard Seifert : The ants of Central and Northern Europe . lutra Verlags- und Vertriebsgesellschaft, Görlitz / Tauer 2007, ISBN 978-3-936412-03-1

[2] Bernhard Seifert: Observe, determine ants. Naturbuch Verlag, Augsburg, 1996. ISBN 3-89440-170-2

[Galle-3] L. Gallé, L. Körmöczi, E. Hornung, J. Kerekes (1998): Structure of ant assemblages in a Middle-European successional sand-dune area. Tiscia 31: 19-28.