Ants Down Under
Australian Ants
ANIC Home
Entomology Home
CSIRO Home
About Ants
List of Taxa
Browse Classification
Search Database
Identification Keys
About this Site
Ants in Australia
Distribution Patterns
Life in a Colony
Life Cycle
Feeding
Nests
Ants as Pests
Environmental Monitoring
Classification
Taxonomic Changes
Identification
Glossary of Terms
Collecting Methods
Specimen Preparation
Subfamilies
Genera
Using the Keys
Subfamilies
Amblyoponine Genera
Cerapachyine Genera
Dolichoderine Genera
Ectatommine Genera
Formicine Genera
Myrmeciine Genera
Myrmicine Genera
Ponerine Genera
Proceritiine Genera
Comparing the Following Taxa
Formicidae Latreille, 1809
While ants are one of the most familiar insects and can be reliably identified by even the youngest naturalist, what exactly is it that makes an ant an ant? There are several traits which will separate them from other insects. First, all ants have either a single small, distinct segment, the petiole, or two small segments, the petiole and postpetiole, between the mesosoma and gaster. For definitions of these morphological terms see the next section as well as the Glossary. These separate segments are absent from almost all other insects other than a few groups of wasps. A character which is found only in ants is the metapleural gland. This gland is found on the side of the propodeum just above the hind leg and has a small opening to the outside of the body. It should be noted that while this gland is found only in ants, not all ants have a metapleural gland. A few genera in the subfamily Formicinae have lost the metapleural gland and its associated opening.
In addition to these two characters, there are several other distinctive traits of ants. One is their elbowed antennae. The first segment of the antenna, the scape, is much longer than the remaining segments, the funiculus, and the joint between them is highly flexible. During normal activity the scape is held upright and near the head with the funiculus projecting forward in front of the body. This arrangement allows the tips of the antennae to be positioned near the mouthparts to assist in inspecting nearby objects, or to be extended forward away from the body to investigate more distant objects. While a sting is present in many ants, it is absent in several large and common groups and is of little use in separating ants from many other insects.
Web site by Steve Shattuck and Natalie Barnett, © Copyright 2005-2013 CSIRO Australia.
Use and information subject to our
Legal Notice and Disclaimer
. Problem? Contact
webmaster
.
Please cite this page as: CSIRO, 2013. Ants Down Under, viewed 22 May 2013, <http://anic.ento.csiro.au/ants>.