Tetramorium lanuginosum Mayr, 1870

Herrera Léon Baert Wouter Dekoninck, Henri W., Causton, Charlotte E., Sevilla, Christian R., Pozo, Paola & Hendrickx, Frederik, 2020, Distribution and habitat preferences of Galápagos ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), Belgian Journal of Entomology 93, pp. 1-60 : 40

Tetramorium lanuginosum Mayr, 1870

Wooly Groove–Headed Ant ( DEYRUP et al., 2000)

(ANTWEB: CASENT0173289). ( Map 38 )

An ant known from some states in the south of the United States, Caribbean islands, Central America, East Asia, Australia, Oceania and the western Old World (WETTERER, 2010b). Tetramorium lanuginosum is a tramp ant previously only known from Floreana Island ( PEZZATTI et al., 1998). It is currently recorded on 15 islands. Recent collections and revisions of museum material show it to be distributed in natural and disturbed areas, including human settlements and places visited by tourists. Nests can be found under rocks and in soil. The species is mainly established in dry areas of Galápagos and has been collected under mangrove plants and stones, on beaches, on dry shrubs, and visiting flowers of O. megasperma . Tetramorium lanuginosum was the only ant species collected on Wolf Island during an intensive survey (more than 5 hours) and it may outcompete other ant species on some of the smaller islands. Although T. lanuginosum is not considered invasive in other parts of the world, it has potential to impact island ecosystems ( CAUSTON et al. 2006; WETTERER, 2010b; WETTERER & HITA–GARCIA, 2015).

Figures

Map 38. Distribution of Tetramorium lanuginosum Mayr, 1870.