Myrmica laevinodis
Encyclopedia
Myrmica laevinodis is a species of ant
that closely resembles M. kotokui
, and is at times difficult to distinguish, due to variation in morphology and color in M. kotokui. However, the unraised rugae on the posterodorsal portion of the mesonotum are usually characteristic, though some M. kotokui workers have this character. It is best in the field to examine the body coloration of a number of workers from each colony. Also, M. rubra has fewer strong rugae, and is more smooth on the lower half of the mesonotal pleura than M. kotokui; its propodeal spines are shorter, and the rugae on the anterior basal portion of the 1st gastral tergite are relatively weak and fewer in number. Although Japanese specimens differ morphologically from European M. rubra material, and resemble M. kotokui in petiolar morphology, the name Myrmica rubra is applied to them for the present. This species nests in the soil of grassland on seashores and lowlands (Onoyama, 1989). Rare in Japan.
Myrmica laevinodis have been known to feed on honeydew produced by aphids, in return for protecting them from parasites.
Ant
Ants are social insects of the family Formicidae and, along with the related wasps and bees, belong to the order Hymenoptera. Ants evolved from wasp-like ancestors in the mid-Cretaceous period between 110 and 130 million years ago and diversified after the rise of flowering plants. More than...
that closely resembles M. kotokui
Myrmica kotokui
Myrmica kotokui is a species of ant of the genus Myrmica.This species closely resembles the European Myrmica ruginodis and is perhaps not a separate distinctive species. Onoyama suggested that it might best be treated as a subspecies of M. ruginodis.-External links:*...
, and is at times difficult to distinguish, due to variation in morphology and color in M. kotokui. However, the unraised rugae on the posterodorsal portion of the mesonotum are usually characteristic, though some M. kotokui workers have this character. It is best in the field to examine the body coloration of a number of workers from each colony. Also, M. rubra has fewer strong rugae, and is more smooth on the lower half of the mesonotal pleura than M. kotokui; its propodeal spines are shorter, and the rugae on the anterior basal portion of the 1st gastral tergite are relatively weak and fewer in number. Although Japanese specimens differ morphologically from European M. rubra material, and resemble M. kotokui in petiolar morphology, the name Myrmica rubra is applied to them for the present. This species nests in the soil of grassland on seashores and lowlands (Onoyama, 1989). Rare in Japan.
Myrmica laevinodis have been known to feed on honeydew produced by aphids, in return for protecting them from parasites.