Abstract
The world fauna of the dolichoderine ant genus Iridomyrmex (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) is revised. Seventy-nine species are recognised, 31 described as new. Four species are removed from Iridomyrmex: I. butteli (Forel) to Chronoxenus, I. extensus Emery to Anonychomyrma and I. krakatauae Wheeler and I. latifrons Karavaiev to Tapinoma. Twenty-five species and subspecies pass into synonymy: I. emeryi Crawley is synonymised under I. victorianus Forel (itself raised to species), I. vicinus Clark is synonymised under I. splendens Forel (itself raised to species), I. wingi Donisthorpe is synonymised under I. pallidus Forel (itself raised to species), I. gracilis Lowne (a preoccupied name) is synonymised under I. bicknelli Emery, I. mimulus Shattuck is synonymised under I. viridigaster Clark, I. albitarsus Wheeler and I. notialis Shattuck are synonymised under I. calvus Emery, I. obscurus Crawley is synonymised under I. suchieri Forel (itself raised to species), I. greensladei Shattuck is synonymised under I. purpureus, I. variscapus Shattuck is synonymised under I. bigi Shattuck, and I. meinerti Forel is synonymised under I. anceps Roger. Of the subspecies, I. anceps formosae Forel, I. anceps ignobilis Mann, I. rufoniger metallescens Emery, I. anceps sikkimensis Forel and I. anceps watsonii Forel are synonymised under I. anceps, Iridomyrmex bicknelli splendidus Forel is synonymised under I. bicknelli Emery, I. rufoniger fusciventris Forel is synonymised under I. brunneus Forel (itself raised to species), I. chasei concolor Forel and I. chasei yalgooensis Forel are synonymised under I. chasei Forel, I. rufoniger incertus Forel is synonymised under I. pallidus, I. rufoniger domesticus Forel and I. rufoniger septentrionalis Forel are synonymised under I. rufoniger Lowne, and I. mattiroloi parcens Forel is synonymised under I. victorianus. In addition to the five taxa mentioned above, the subspecies I. bicknelli azureus Viehmeyer, I. bicknelli brunneus Forel, I. mattiroloi continentis Forel, I. gracilis minor Forel, I. gracilis rubriceps Forel and I. gracilis spurcus Forel are raised to species. A single species, I. bicknelli luteus Forel, could not be identified and is treated as species inquirenda. A key to workers of the genus is supplied. Lectotypes are designated for I. brunneus Forel, I. chasei Forel, I. conifer Forel, I. discors Forel, I. minor Forel, I. mjobergi Forel, I. pallidus Forel, I. suchieri Forel and I. victorianus Forel. Neotypes are established for I. anceps (Roger), I. parcens Forel and I. rufoniger (Lowne). Five fossil species are considered to belong to Iridomyrmex, although only one of these is supported by rigorous morphological data. Four fossil species are regarded as incertae sedis within the genus. The following fossil-based species are removed from Iridomyrmex (all new combinations): geinitzi Mayr to Anonychomyrma, haueri Mayr to Dolichoderus, oblongiceps Wheeler to Eldermyrmex (gen. n.) and bogdassarovi Nazaraw, Bagdasaraw & Uriew to Liometopum.References
Allan, R.A., Elgar, M.A., Capon, R.J. (1996) Exploitation of an ant chemical alarm signal by the zodariid spider Habronestes bradley Walckenaer,Proceedings of the Royal Society, London 263, 69–73.
Andersen, A.N. (2000). The Ants of Northern Australia: a guide to the monsoonal fauna. CSIRO Publishing, Collingwood, Victoria. v+106pp.
Andersen, A.N. (2002) Common names for ants. Australian Journal of Entomology, 41, 285–293.
Andersen, A.N. (2007) Ant diversity in arid Australia: a systematic overview, In: Snelling, R.R., Fisher, B.L. and Ward, P.S. (Eds), Advances in ant systematics (Hymenoptera: Formicidae): homage to E. O. Wilson – 50 years of contributions. Memoirs of the American Entomological Institute, 80, pp. 19–51.
Andersen, A.N. & Patel, A.D. (1994) Meat ants as dominant members of Australian ant communities: an experimental test of their influence on the foraging success and forager abundance of other species. Oecologia (Berlin), 98, 15–24.
Barlow, B.A. (1985) A revised natural regions map for Australia. Brunonia, 8, 387–392.
Baroni Urbani, C. (1977) Katalog der Typen von Formicidae (Hymenoptera) der Sammlung des Naturhistorischen Museums Basel (2. Teil). Mitteilungen der Entomologischen Gesellschaft Basel, (n.s.) 27, 61–102.
Bingham, C.T. (1903) Hymenoptera II. Ants and Cuckoo Wasps. The Fauna of British India, including Ceylon and Burma. Taylor and Francis, London, 506pp.
Bolton, B. (1994) Identification Guide to the Ant Genera of the World. Harvard University Press. Cambridge, Massachusetts, 222pp.
Bolton, B. (1995) A New General Catalogue of the Ants of the World. Harvard University Press, Cambridge, Massachusetts, 504pp.
Bolton, B. (2007) Taxonomy of the dolichoderine ant genus Technomyrmex Mayr based on the worker caste. Contributions of the American Entomological Institute, 35(1), 1–150.
Brandão, C.R.F., Baroni Urbani, C., Wagensberg, J. & Yamamoto, C.I. (1998) New Technomyrmex in Dominican amber, with a reappraisal of Dolichoderinae phylogeny. Entomologica Scandinavica, 29, 411–428.
Brown, W.L.,Jr. (1955) The first social parasite in the ant tribe Dacetini. Insectes Sociaux, 2, 181–186.
Brown, W.L.,Jr. (1958) A review of the ants of New Zealand. Acta Hymenopterologica, 1, 1–50.
Brown, W.L.,Jr. (1977) Ctenobethylus (Bethylidae) a new synonym of Iridomyrmex (Formicidae, Hymenoptera). Psyche, 83, 213–215.
Carpenter, F.M. (1930) The fossil ants of North America. Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoology at Harvard College, 70, 1–66.
Clark, J. (1930) New Formicidae, with notes on some little-known species. Proceedings of the Royal Society of Victoria, 43, 2–25.
Clark, J. (1934a) New Australian ants. Memoirs of the National Museum of Victoria, 8, 21–47.
Clark, J. (1934b) Ants from the Otway Ranges. Memoirs of the National Museum of Victoria, 8, 48–73.
Clark, J. (1938) Reports of the McCoy Society for field investigation and research. No. 2. Sir Joseph Banks Islands. 10. Formicidae. Proceedings of the Royal Society of Victoria, 50, 356–382.
Clark, J. (1941) Australian Formicidae. Notes and new species. Memoirs of the National Museum of Victoria, 12, 71–93.
Crawley, W.C. (1918) Some new Australian ants. Entomologists Record and Journal of Variation, 30, 86–92.
Crawley, W.C. (1921) New and little-known species of ants from various localities. Annals and Magazine of Natural History, (9)7, 87–97.
Crozier, R. (1968) Interpopulation karyotype differences in Australian Iridomyrmex of the "detectus" group (Hymenoptera: Formicidae: Dolichoderinae). Journal of the Australian Entomological Society, 7, 25–27.
Dalla Torre, C.G. de (1893) Catalogus hymenopterorum hucusque descriptorum systematicus et synonymicus. Vol. 7 Formicidae (Heterogyna). Leipzig: G. Engelmann, 289 pp.
Del Toro, I., Pacheco, J.A., Mackay, W.P. (2009) Revision of the ant genus Liometopum (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Sociobiology, 53, 299–369.
Dlussky, G.M. (1997) Genera of ants from Baltic Amber. Paleontological Journal, 31(6), 616–627.
Don, W. (2007) Ants of New Zealand. Otago University Press, Dunedin, 240 pp.
Donisthorpe, H. (1947) Ants from New Guinea, including new species and a new genus. Annals and Magazine of Natural History, (11)13, 577–595.
Donisthorpe, H. (1949) A sixth instalment of the Ross Collection of ants from New Guinea. Annals and Magazine of Natural History, (12)1, 744–759.
Dubovikoff, D.A. (2005) The system of taxon Bothriomyrmex Emery, 1869 sensu lato (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) and relatives genera. Kavkazskii Entomologicheskii Byulleten 1(1), 89–94.
Eastwood, R. (2004). Successive replacement of tending ant species at aggregations of scale insects (Hemiptera: Margarodidae and Eriococcidae) on Eucalyptus in south-east Queensland. Australian Journal of Entomology, 43, 1–4.
Eastwood, R. & Fraser, A.M. (1999) Associations between lycaenid butterflies and ants in Australia. Australian Journal of Ecology, 24, 503–537.
Emery, C. (1887) Catalogo delle formiche esistenti nelle collezioni del Museo Civico di Genova. Parte terza. Formiche della regione Indo-Malese e dell'Australia. Annali del Museo Civico di Storia Naturale Giacomo Doria (Genova), 24, 241–256.
Emery. C. (1893) Voyage de MM. Bedot et Pictet dans l'Archipel Malais. Formicides de l'Archipel Malais. Revue Suisse de Zoologie, 1, 187–229.
Emery, C. (1895) Viaggio di Leonardo Fea in Birmania e regioni vicine. LXIII. Formiche di Birmania, del Tenasserim e dei Monti Carin raccolte da L. Fea. Annali del Museo Civico di Storia Naturale Giacomo Doria (Genova), (2)14(34), 450–483.
Emery, C. (1897) Viaggio di Lamberto Loria nella Papuasia orientale. XVIII. Formiche raccolte nella Nuova Guinea dal Dott. Lamberto Loria. Annali del Museo Civico di Storia Naturale Giacomo Doria (Genova), (2)18(38), 546–594.
Emery, C. (1898) Descrizioni di formiche nuove malesi e australiene; note sinonimiche. Rendiconto delle Sessioni della R. Accademia delle Scienze dell'Istituto di Bologna, 2, 231–245.
Emery, C. (1914) Les fourmis de la Nouvelle-Calédonie et des îles Loyalty. In:Sarasin, F. & J. Roux. Nova Caledonia Zoologie. 1. Wiesbaden, pp. 393–437.
Ettershank, G. & Ettershank, J.A. (1982). Ritualised fighting in the meat ant Iridomyrmex purpureus (Smith) (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Journal of the Australian Entomological Society, 21, 97–102.
Fabricius, J.C. (1804) Systema Piezatorum secundum ordines, genera, species adiectis synonymis, locis, observationibus descriptionibus. Carolum Reichard, Brunsvigae, 439 pp.
Fabricius, J.C. (1804) Systema Piezatorum. Brunsvigae. C. Reichard xiv. 439 pp.
Fiedler, K. (2001) Ants that associate with Lycaeninae butterfly larvae: diversity, ecology and biogeography. Diversity and Distributions, 7, 45–60.
Forel, A. (1878a) Der Giftapparat und die Analdrüsen der Ameisen. Zeitschrift für Wissenschaftliche Zoologie, 30(suppl.), 28–68.
Forel, A. (1878b) Études myrmécologiques en 1878 (première partie) avec l’anatomie du gésier des fourmis. Bulletin de la Société Vaudoise des Sciences Naturelles, 15, 337–392.
Forel, A. (1895) Les formicides de l'Empire des Indes et de Ceylan. Part V. Adjonction aux Camponotinae, Mayr., et Polyrhachis, Shuck. Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society, 9, 453–472.
Forel, A. (1901) Formiciden aus dem Bismark-Archipel, auf Grundlage des von Prof. Dr. F. Dahl gesammelten Materials bearbeitet. Mitteilungen aus dem Zoologischen Museum in Berlin, 2, 1–38.
Forel, A. (1902) Fourmis nouvelles d’Australie. Revue Suisse de Zoologie, 10, 405–548.
Forel, A. (1904) Miscellanea myrmecologiques. Revue Suisse de Zoologie, 12, 1–52.
Forel, A. (1907a) Formicidae. In: Michaelsen, W. & Hartmeyer, R. Die Fauna Südwest-Australiens. Ergebnisse der Hamburger südwest-australischen Forschungsreise 1905. 1, 263–310. Jena.
Forel, A. (1907b) Formicides du Musée National Hongrois. Annales Historico-Naturales Musei Nationalis Hungarici, 5, 1–42.
Forel, A. (1910) Formicides australiens reçus de M. M. Froggatt et Rowland Turner. Revue Suisse de Zoologie, 18, 1–94.
Forel, A. (1912) H. Sauter's Formosa-Ausbeute: Formicidae (Hym.). Entomologische Mitteilungen, 1, 45–81.
Forel, A. (1913) Fourmis de Tasmanie et d'Australie recoltees par MM. Lea, Froggatt, etc. Bulletin de la Société Vaudoise des Sciences Naturelles, 49, 173–196.
Forel, A. (1915) Results of Dr. E. Mjöberg’s Swedish scientific expeditions to Australia, 1910-1913. 2 Ameisen. Arkiv för Zoologi, 9(16), 1–119.
Greenslade, P.J.M. (1974) The identity of Iridomymex purpureus form viridiaeneus Viehmeyer (Hymenoptera : Formicidae). Journal of the Australian Entomological Society 13, 247–248.
Greenslade, P.J.M. (1987) Environment and competition as determinants of local geographical distribution of five meat ants (Iridomyrmex purpureus) and allied species (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Australian Journal of Zoology, 35, 259–273.
Greenslade, P.J.M., and Halliday, R.H. (1982) Distribution and speciation in meat ants, Iridomyrmex purpureus and related species (Hymenoptera:Formicidae). In: W.R. Barker and P.J.M. Greenslade (Eds.) Evolution of the Flora and Fauna of Arid Australia. Peacock Publishing: Frewville, South Australia. pp. 249–55.
Halliday R.B. (1979) Esterase variation at three loci in meat ants. Journal of Heredity, 70, 57–61.
Halliday R.B. (1981) Heterozygosity and genetic distance in sibling species of meat ants (Iridomyrmex purpureus group). Evolution, 35, 234–242.
Heterick, B.E. (2009) A Guide to the Ants of South-western Australia. Records of the Western Australian Museum Supplement No. 76, 205 pp.
ICZN [International Code of Zoological Nomenclature] (1999). The International Trust for Zoological Nomenclature 1999, London, UK. Fourth edition. 306pp.
Karavaiev, W. (1933) Ameisen aus dem Indo-Australischen Gebiet, VII. Konowia, 12, 260–271.
Kirby, W.F. (1896) Hymenoptera. In: Spencer, B. (Ed.) Report on the Work of the Horn Scientific Expedition to Central Australia. Melbourne. Part 1 supplement. Melville, Mullen & Slade, pp. 203–209.
Lowne, B.T. (1865a) Contributions to the natural history of Australian ants. Entomologist, 2, 273–280.
Lowne, B.T. (1865b) Contributions to the natural history of Australian ants. Entomologist, 2, 331–336.
Mann, W.M. (1921) The ants of the Fiji Islands. Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoology 64, 401–499.
Mayr, G. (1862) Myrmecologische Studien. Verhandlungen der Kaiserlich-Königlichen Zoologisch-Botanischen Gesellschaft in Wien, 12, 649–776.
Mayr, G. (1867a) Adnotationes in monographiam formicidarum Indo-Neerlandicarum. Tijdschrift voor Entomologie, (2)2(10), 33–117.
Mayr, G. (1867b) Vorläufige Studien über die Radoboj-Formiciden, in der Sammlung der k.k. geologischen Reichsanstalt. Jahrbuch der k.k. Geologischen Reichsanstalt, 17, 47–62.
Mayr, G. (1868) Die Ameisen des baltischen Bernsteins. Beiträge zur Naturkunde Preussens. Königlichen Physikalisch-Ökonomischen Gesellschaft zu Königsberg, 1, 1–102.
Mayr, G. (1870) Neue Formiciden. Verhandlungen der Kaiserlich-Königlichen Zoologisch-Botanischen Gesellschaft in Wien, 20, 939–996.
Mayr, G. (1876) Die australischen Formiciden. Journal des Museum Goddefroy (4)12, 56–115.
Nazaraw, U.I., Bagdasaraw, A.A. & Ur'ew, I.I. (1994) First discovery of insects (Diptera, Hymenoptera) in amber from the Belarussian Polesye region. Vyestsi Akademii Navuk Syryya Biyalahichnykh Navuk, 2, 104–108.
Nipperess, D.A., Andersen, A.N., Pik, A.J., Bramble, R., Wilson, P., Beattie, A.J. (2008) The influence of spatial scale on the congruence of classifications circumscribing morphological units of biodiversity. Diversity and Distributions, 14, 917–924.
Roger, J. (1863) Die neu aufgeführten Gattungen und Arten meines Formiciden-Verzeichnisses, nebst Ergänzung einiger früher gegeben Beschreibungen. Berliner entomologische Zeitschrift, 7, 131–214.
Shattuck, S.O. (1990) Revision of the dolichoderine ant genus Turneria (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Systematic Entomology, 15, 101–117.
Shattuck, S.O. (1992a) Review of the dolichoderine ant genus Iridomyrmex Mayr with descriptions of three new genera (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Journal of the Australian Entomological Society, 31, 13–18.
Shattuck, S.O. (1992b) Generic revision of the ant subfamily Dolichoderinae (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Sociobiology, 21, 1–181.
Shattuck, S.O. (1993a) Revision of the Iridomyrmex purpureus species-group (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Invertebrate Taxonomy, 7, 113–149.
Shattuck, S.O. (1993b) Revision of the Iridomyrmex calvus species-group (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Invertebrate Taxonomy, 7, 1303–1325.
Shattuck, S.O. (1996) Revision of the Iridomyrmex discors species-group (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Australian Journal of Entomology, 35, 37–42.
Shattuck, S.O. (1999) Australian Ants: Their biology and identification. Monographs in Invertebrate Taxonomy, 3, i–xi & 1–226.
Shattuck S.O. & McMillan, P. (1998) Revision of the species of the Iridomyrmex conifer group (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) with notes on their biology. Australian Journal of Zoology, 46, 301–315.
Smith, F. (1858) Catalogue of Hymenopterous insects in the Collection of the British Museum. Part VI. Formicidae. London, British Museum, 216 pp.
Smith, M. R. (1957) New synonymy of a New Guinea ant. Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington, 58 (1956), 347.
Snelling, R.R. & Hunt, J.H. (1975) The ants of Chile (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Revista Chilena de Entomologia, 9, 63–129.
Taylor, R.W. (1986) The quadrinomial infrasubspecific names of Australian ants. General and Applied Entomology, 18, 33–27.
Taylor, R.W. (1987) A checklist of the ants of Australia, New Caledonia and New Zealand. (Supplement). CSIRO Division of Entomology Report No. 41 (supplement), 1–5.
Taylor R.W. & Brown, D.R. (1985) Formicoidea. In: Walton, D.W. (Ed.) Zoological catalogue of Australia, vol. 2. Hymenoptera: Formicoidea, Vespoidea and Sphecoidea. Australian Government Publishing Service, Canberra. vi + 381 pp.
Théobald, N. (1937) Les Insectes Fossiles des Terrains Oligocènes de France. Nancy, 473 pp.
van Wilgenburg, E., van Lieshout, E. & Elgar, M.A. (2005) Conflict resolution strategies in meat ants (Iridomyrmex purpureus): ritualised displays versus lethal fighting. Behaviour, 142, 701–716.
van Wilgenburg, E. & Elgar, M.A. (2007) Colony structure and spatial distribution of food resources in the polydomous meat ant Iridomyrmex purpureus. Insectes Sociaux, 54, 5–10.
Viehmeyer, H. (1914) Neue und unvollständig bekannte Ameisen der alten Welt. Archiv für Naturgeschichte, (A)79(12), 24–60.
Viehmeyer, H. (1925) Formiciden der australischen Faunenregion. (Fortsetzung.). Entomologische Mitteilungen, 13, 219–229.
Ward, P.S., Brady, S.G., Fisher, B.L., Schultz, T.R. (2010) Phylogeny and biogeography of dolichoderine ants: Effects of data partitioning and relict taxa on historical inference. Systematic Biology, 59, 342–362.
Wheeler, G.C. & Wheeler, J. (1974) Ant larvae of the subfamily Dolichoderinae: second supplement. Pan-Pacific Entomologist, 49, 396–401.
Wheeler, W.M. (1915a) Hymenoptera. Transactions and Proceedings of the Royal Society of South Australia, 39, 805–823.
Wheeler, W.M. (1915b) The ants of the Baltic Amber. Schriften der Physikalisch-ökonomischen Gesellschaft zu Königsberg in Pr., 55(1914), 1–142.
Wheeler, W.M. (1924) Ants of Krakatau and other islands in the Sunda Strait. Treubia, 5, 239–258.
Wheeler, W.M. (1927) The ants of Lord Howe Island and Norfolk Island. Proceedings of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, 62, 121–153.
Wheeler, W.M. (1936). Ecological relations of ponerine and other ants to termites. Proceedings of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, 71, 159–243.
Wild, A.L. & Cuezzo, F. (2006) Rediscovery of a fossil dolichoderine ant lineage and a description of a new genus from South America. Zootaxa, 1142, 57–68.
Wilson, E.O. & Taylor, R.W. (1967) The ants of Polynesia (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Pacific Insects Monograph, 14, 1–109.
Wilson, E.O. (1985a) Ants from the Cretaceous and Eocene amber of North America. Psyche, 92, 205–216.
Wilson, E.O. (1985b) Ants of the Dominican amber. 3. The subfamily Dolichoderinae. Psyche, 92, 17–37.
Zhang, J. (1989) Fossil Insects from Shanwang, Shandong, China. Shandong Science and Technology Publishing House, Jinan, China, 459 pp.
Zimmerman, E.C. (1967) Imathia and Amblycnemus (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Cryptorhynchinae). Pacific Insects, 9, 187–196.