Abstract
A small amber piece containing one nearly complete and four partial winged male fossil ants was collected from a lignite layer at a site along the Neuse River near Goldsboro, North Carolina, USA. Based on the anatomical details, these ants belong to the extinct subfamily Sphecomyrminae. While a formal species description and naming is not the purpose of this paper, similarities are noted to the ant genera Sphecomyrma and Baikurus, and taxonomic identification is made with the latter: Baikurus. This finding confirms the presence of the subfamily Sphecomyrminae in the Campanian stage and adds North Carolina to a short list of worldwide sites where Cretaceous ants have been uncovered. Further, this finding provides added confirmation of the social nature of ants already in the Late Cretaceous with particular reference to swarming behavior, as this piece is the fourth discovery of multiple winged males in amber.
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