The Ant Larvae of the Myrmicine Tribe Solenopsidini

Abstract

nests in natural plant cavities in humid neotropical forests; the sexual larvae are markedly different from the worker larvae. Several genera are workerless social parasites: Anergates, Anergatides, Bruchomyrma, Epixenus, Epoecus, Hagioxenus, Trichomyrmex and Wheeleriella. The largest genus in the tribe is MVionomorium; next is Solenopsis. These two genera have provided mankind with several of its annoying pests. Three are common household pests in the United States: Monomorium minimum, M. pharaonis and Solenopsis molesta. Concerning the polymorphic species, Solenopsis geminata and S. saevissima, Creighton2 has written: Fire ants of another species (Solenopsis xyloni) are similarly injurious and sometimes also become house pests. Several of the small monomorphic species of Solenopsis are known to be thief anits; they nest near the galleries of larger ants and steal the food and brood of the latter. Wheeler3 once wrote that the tribe Solenopsidini was unsatisfactorily defined. After studying the larvae, we heartily agree, for they are a very heterogeneous lot. To be sure, the larvae of Monomorium s. str. can scarcely be distinguished from those of Solenopsis; but aside from these two, we can detect no afrinities. The nine genera studied might just as well be in eight different tribes. We have not been able to find any characters common to all the genera; hence we have not even attempted a characterization of the tribe.