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[dspdrew]

Scientific Name:  Platythyrea punctata (Smith, F., 1858)

Common Name:  Silvery Hunter Ants (Deyrup 2017)

Phylogeny:  Formicidae: Ponerinae: Platythyreini

Distribution:  Southern Florida and Southern Texas south to Brazil and West Indies (Smith 1979). Considered endemic to southern Florida.

Queen size:  4-6 mm

Worker size:  4-6 mm

Natural Habitat:  Forested areas, in dry dead wood, dead logs, dead branches, leaf litter. Current colony collected in Tillandsia balbisiana found on ground in shaded tree area next to parking lot and lake in Lee County, Florida (Bonita Beach).

Circadian Activity:  Nocturnal and crepuscular

Mating Flight:  Not available

Queen Founding Method:  Presumably being a ponerine, non-claustral

Monogyne or Polygyne:  Monogyne when present. Reproduction by this species is complex, as explained in studied by Heinze and Hölldobler (1995) and Schilder et al. (1999). In many nests all individuals appear to be workers. Unmated workers can produce diploid (female) offspring (thelytokous parthenogenesis), as well as occasional males. Usually, one female lays most of the eggs in each colony. Surprisingly, there are dominance hierarchies in these colonies, whose individuals must usually be very closely related, but the dominant female is not necessarily the one who lays most of the eggs. A small number of males are produced in some colonies. Queens and individuals intermediate between queens and workers also occur. All females have a spermatheca, although it may be poorly developed, and a small number of individuals of all forms have sperm stored in the spermatheca. Kellner and Heinze (2011) showed that in this species offspring and mothers exhibited identical genotypes with no recombination events. Their research also demonstrated that male production varied between populations, thus males may not be present in all populations throughout its range. A possible upshot of this behavior is that colonies once established may be divided and perpetuated since males are not needed for queens to produce workers.

Average time from egg to worker:  Egg to Larvae = 38 ±5 days; Larvae to pupae = 30 ±5 days; Pupae to worker = 40 ±5 days. Displays a relatively slow rate of development. Observations G. Edwards

Recommended Temperature:  72F-85F/ 22C-29.5C

Recommended Humidity:  Moderately moist

Preferred Foods:  Meal worms, crickets, fruit flies, termites. This species has been observed to perform trophallaxis.

Housing:  Colony maintained in a large petri dish supplied with pieces of wood and moist sphagnum moss.

Hibernation Details:  No hibernation

Escape Barrier Methods:  Fluon

Difficulty rating:  Relatively easy to maintain. Readily takes food.

Bite and/or Sting rating:  Can sting.

Special Care or Interesting Notes:  Best kept in formicarium that has soil/peat moss along with pieces of wood as that is a preferred nesting location. A very fast ant.

Additional Links:
https://www.antwiki....thyrea_punctata

References:
Deyrup, M. 2017. Ant s of Florida: Identification and natural history. CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL.
Heinze, J., and B. Hölldobler. 1995. Thelytokous parthenogenesis and dominance hierarchies in the ponerine ant, Platythyrea punctata. Naturwissenschaften 82: 40-41
Kellner, K., and Heinze, J. 2010. Mechanism of facultative parthenogenesis in the ant Platythyrea punctata. Evol. Ecol. 25: 77-89.
Schilder, K., J. Heinze, and B. Hölldobler. 1999. Colony structure and reproduction in the thelytokous parthenogenetic ant Platythyrea punctata (F. Smith), (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Insectes Sociaus 46: 150-158.
Smith, D. R. 1979. Formicoidea pp. 1323-1467 in Krombein, K. V., P. D. Hurd. Jr., D. R. Smith, and B. D. Burks, Eds. Catalog of Hymenoptera in America north of Mexico. Smithsonian Institution Press. Washington, D.C.: 2735 pp.


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