Tapinoma melanocephalum (ghost ant).

T. melanocephalum is a small ant species around 1.5 mm in length originating from the Old World tropics. It is considered an invasive and "tramp" ant species: widely associated with humans, it has been moved around the subtropical and tropical world by human activity. This ant is also recorded in heated buildings in areas such as Canada and Finland. It is primarily a household pest, nesting in housing and consuming household food. In areas such as Florida it is considered one of the most important house-infesting pests. However it has been known to affect agricultural production in situations such as greenhouses, especially if it tends honeydew-producing insects and protects these pests from biological control organisms. T. melanocephalum is thought to be capable of transporting pathogenic microbes and is often abundant in hospitals. Some people can suffer a slight, red irritation of the skin following contact with this ant. This ant is listed on the ISSG global invasive species database.

The Inventory of Soil Ants in Residential Area of Palembang

The purpose of this research is to find out the species of soil ants in the residential area. The sampling method is hand collecting and baited trap (tuna and honey). There are 8 species found: Acanthomyrmex sp., Solenopsis germinata, Monomorium pharaonis, Pheidole megacephala, Paratrechina longicornis. Tapinoma melanocephalum, Camponotus ligniperda, Diacamma intricatum. The most numerous species, namely Pheidole megacephala and the least species, namely Diacamma intricatum. Ant species diversity tends to increase, as human activity decreases

Interference Competition for Mutualism between Ant Species Mediates Ant-Mealybug Associations

Ant-hemipteran mutualism has been well documented, and many studies have reported the interference competition between ant species for the mutualism. However, little is known on how this interference competition impacts the reciprocally beneficial association. Previous studies demonstrated that the invasive mealybug Phenacoccus solenopsis (Tinsley) has established close mutual relationship with the ghost ant Tapinoma melanocephalum (Fabricius). The sympatric ants, Paratrechina longicornis (Latreille) and Tetramorium bicarinatum (Nylander) were frequently observed to compete for nutrient honeydew produced by P. solenopsis with T. melanocephalum. Herein, we investigated the effects of interference competition between the ant species on the ant-mealybug interactions. Phenacoccus solenopsis benefited from the tending by T. melanocephalum and P. longicornis. Interference competition between T. melanocephalum and P. longicornis interrupted the mutualism, suppressed the trailing activity of both species, but negligibly influenced the parasitism of Aenasius bambawalei Hayat, a solitary endoparasitoid of P. solenopsis. Harmonia axyridis, a predator of P. solenopsis, showed a significant avoidance when encountering with T. melanocephalum or P. longicornis, but not T. bicarinatum. Ant workers showed higher aggressiveness and lower exploratory activity when T. melanocephalum encountered P. longicornis. However, competition between T. melanocephalum and T. bicarinatum seldom influenced the trailing and exploratory activity of T. melanocephalum. It is concluded that interference competition for mutualism between ant species can mediate ant-mealybug associations and the fitness of mealybug colony. Our results also demonstrate that the effects of interference competition between ant species on ant-mealybug mutualism are varied among ant species.

Formigas veiculadoras de bactérias patogênicas em uma drogaria no Município de Alagoinhas-BA

Formigas são insetos em que há capacidade de aderir microrganismos e então de disseminá-los no ambiente durante a sua locomoção, que é rápida e eficiente. Sendo então consideradas carreadoras de bactérias e também uma via de transmissão de infecções em hospitais e postos de saúde, podendo constituir uma ameaça à saúde pública. O objetivo deste estudo foi verificar se as formigas presentes em uma drogaria no município de Alagoinhas-Bahia eram veiculadoras de bactérias patogênicas. As formigas foram coletadas manualmente, utilizando-se pinças e pedaços de algodão estéreis, bem como iscas atrativas de mel, nos meses de julho e outubro de 2015. O material microbiológico proveniente das formigas foi cultivado em tubos de ensaios, contendo caldo (Brain Heart Infusion) BHI e incubado em estufa a 35°C por 24horas. A partir dos tubos, que apresentaram crescimento bacteriano, foram realizadas diluições seriadas, seguidas da semeadura por esgotamento em estrias, em placas contendo meio de cultura Ágar nutriente. As colônias de bactérias isoladas foram submetidas a ensaios de coloração de Gram e testes bioquímicos de identificação rápida. As formigas coletadas para avaliação foram armazenadas em álcool a 70% até a identificação. Tapinoma melanocephalum e Pheidole sp1 foram as únicas espécies encontradas, sendo T. melanocephalum a mais frequente. Cocos Gram-positivos pertencentes à família Streptococcacea e Micrococcacea foram detectados. Através do presente estudo foi demonstrado que as formigas supra-citadas podem carrear bactérias patogênicas e isso representa risco de contaminação às pessoas e aos medicamentos.

First survey of ground-dwelling ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) on the uninhabited Gaja-jima Island, the Ryukyu archipelago, Japan

The ground-dwelling ant fauna on the uninhabited Gaja-jima Island, the Tokara Islands, the Ryukyu archipelago, Japan was investigated, which was the first survey on ants of the island. Twenty-three ant species were found during a visit of only eight hours in daytime. Four of them were new records to the Tokara Islands. Of the four new records, the southern limit of distributions was renewed for three species. Three exotic species, Pheidole fervens, Tetramorium bicarinatum, and Tapinoma melanocephalum were recognized, which seems relatively low given that ten exotic species have been altogether recorded from the Tokara Islands. The relationship between invasion by ants and the scale of human activity is discussed.

Taxonomic identity of the ghost ant, Tapinoma melanocephalum (Fabricius, 1793) (Formicidae: Dolichoderinae)

This paper revises the taxonomy of Tapinoma melanocephalum (Fabricius, 1793) as follows: T. melanocephalum = Tapinoma luffae (Kuriam, 1955) syn. nov., = Tapinoma melanocephalum coronatum Forel, 1908 syn. nov., = Tapinoma melanocephalum malesianum Forel, 1913 syn. nov. A neotype of Tapinoma melanocephalum (Fabricius, 1793) is designed here. Lectotypes of Tapinoma melanocephalum coronatum Forel, 1908 and T. melanocephalum malesianum Forel, 1913 are designated. Formica wallacei is proposed as a replacement name for Formica familiaris (= T. melanocephalum senior synonym). The worker, queen and male are redescribed and diagnosed. The morphological variability of populations is discussed. All castes are included in full color images.