91 replies to this topic

[PurdueEntomology]

Howdy ya'll!!

It has been a time since I have logged on.  My research into population genetics of Tapinoma sessile is coming along.  As I suspected after running a Cytochrome Oxidase 1, a mitochondrial DNA gene, genetic analysis and subsequent phylogenetic investigation the higher elevation T. sessile populations in Appalachia are clearly associated with the Canadian population and not the regional North and South haplotypes as per a previously published research paper.  Also, the North and South as well as this Mountain population have statistically significant variations as per mean elevation distributions, the South preferring lower elevations, the North moderately elevations and then the Mountain.  I will now do a further detailed nuclear DNA analysis to see if crypsis is occurring or not.  Basically to see if genetically a reassignment of the singular species status is warranted.  I have also begun detailed morphology analysis to see if there are any distinct morphological variances to add to the crypsis hypothesis.   

 

Caio!

[Broncos]

deleted

Edited by Broncos, May 30 2021 - 10:17 AM.

[DDD101DDD]

I have no idea what the heck you just said. But if you do some sort of Entomology, can you try to genetically modify some virus or something to only kill Argentine ants or tapinoma sessile


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Basically the he said the populations of sessile might be different and more unrelated then previously thought. At least that's how I interpreted it.

Edited by DDD101DDD, September 14 2020 - 3:46 AM.

[Ants_Dakota]

Thanks so much for doing this research, purdue! i love seeing all that work!

[ANTdrew]

Why kill Tapinoma if they are a native species? They have their place out in nature. It’s a different story when they invade my home. That’s when I break out the Terro ant baits.

[Broncos]

Why kill Tapinoma if they are a native species? They have their place out in nature. It’s a different story when they invade my home. That’s when I break out the Terro ant baits.

Wait their native? There are a bunch of people complaining on the antkeeping reddit because of how invasive tapinoma sessile are


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[ANTdrew]

They are native to eastern North America. Perhaps they are invasive in other areas? Purdue would know.

[DDD101DDD]

According to antmaps they aren't invasive to  most of the world. They probably just identified them wrong or assumed they were invasive because of how common they are.

[Kaelwizard]

I’ve only seen them once a couple years ago despite them being “common.”

[Antkid12]

They are pretty common where I live.

[Devi]

Interesting!  Thank's for sharing.

[gcsnelling]

They are by far the biggest pest ant in the eastern U.S.  Western U.S does see them invade structures but not near as commonly.

[Ants_Dakota]

basically under every rock up in the black hills.

[PurdueEntomology]

Tapinoma sessile was fist described by Say in 1836 and is an endemic of North America, it has a range from the Yucatan up along the Eastern US into Canada (Nova Scotia, New Brunswick) then across the Mississippi and the US-Canadian  Great Plains, the Rocky Mountains across to the West Coast down the Baja Coast to up to British Columbia.  It is a "nuisance" pest, not a medical pest or crop pest.  Approximately 25% of all  pest control "ant calls" across the Continental USA in structures are T. sessile.  I am looking to see if it is one monolithic trans-continental species or is a population of more than one species, externally almost indistinguishable yet genetically different enough to be considered separate species, that is what "crypsis" is, as I used it in my initial post thread. Mitochondrial DNA is matrilineally transmitted, i.e., it comes only via the mother because mitochondria are found externally to the nucleus (nuclear DNA most of us are familiar with in basic high school biology) in the cytoplasm and thus is passed through cytoplasm as egg cells divide,  and unlike nuclear DNA has a more rapid mutation rate so is good, relatively speaking, in doing initial population studies to show divergences and possible speciation and  in the past two decades Mitochondrial DNA has been a go to. There has been only one confirmed introduction of this ant outside it's native range, the big island of Hawaii.  There was a report of it being introduced into three east coastal provinces of mainland China and Taiwan but these are not substantiated to date. Unfortunately the fact is often times Chinese research is a bit unreliable.  This is an academic fact not a prejudice on my part.  It has what are known as invasive sydrome phenotypic plasticities and thus has the potential of becoming a global invasive, but to date that has not happened.  This means it can easily adjust itself to new environments and successfully establish as a dominant species, even in its own native range, especially in urban areas where competition with other endemic ants has been mitigated due to their inability to adapt to anthropogenically altered urban spaces. 

Thanks for the read!

Edited by PurdueEntomology, September 15 2020 - 3:06 PM.

[PurdueEntomology]

Why kill Tapinoma if they are a native species? They have their place out in nature. It’s a different story when they invade my home. That’s when I break out the Terro ant baits.

I am not working to kill them, just uncover what they may actually be, a species complex, as for their getting into homes, I have a colony in one of my orchids outside, I let them be, though to be honest I had them in my house in Alcoa, TN and they were a bit troublesome, always getting into the honey and sugar.  I have a nice large colony in my myrmeculture collection of species and though a bit boring I still value them as a member of our wonderful diversity of North American ants.  It is really exciting for me personally to be able to learn new things about them and put that out there in the myrmecological-entomological-biodiversity communities!

[Broncos]

I think he was responding to me. I thought sessile were invasive.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[PurdueEntomology]

I think he was responding to me. I thought sessile were invasive.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

No, I was just giving a response to all the posts just to add clarification.

[gcsnelling]

Tapinoma sessile was fist described by Say in 1836 and is an endemic of North America, it has a range from the Yucatan up along the Eastern US into Canada (Nova Scotia, New Brunswick). across the Mississippi and the US-Canadian  Great Plains, the Rocky Mountains across to the West Coast down the Baja Coast to up to British Columbia.  It is a "nuisance" pest, not a medical pest or crop pest.  Approximately 25% of all  pest control "ant calls" across the Continental USA in structures are T. sessile.  I am looking to see if it is one monolithic trans-continental species or is a population of more than one species, externally almost indistinguishable yet genetically different enough to be considered separate species, that is what "crysis" is, as I used it in my initial post thread. Mitochondrial DNA is matrilineally transmitted, i.e., it comes only via the mother because mitochondria are found externally to the nucleus (nuclear DNA most of us are familiar with in basic high school biology) in the cytoplasm and thus is passed through cytoplasm as egg cells divide,  and unlike nuclear DNA has a more rapid mutation rate so is good, relatively speaking, in doing initial population studies to show divergences and possible speciation and  in the past two decades Mitochondrial DNA has been a go to. There has been only one confirmed introduction of this ant outside it's native range, the big island of Hawaii.  There was a report of it being introduced into three east coastal provinces of mainland China and Taiwan but these are not substantiated to date. Unfortunately the fact is often times Chinese research is a bit unreliable.  This is an academic fact not a prejudice on my part.  It has what are known as invasive sydrome phenotypic plasticities and thus has the potential of becoming a global invasive, but to date that has not happened.  This means it can easily adjust itself to new environments and successfully establish as a dominant species, even in its own native range, especially in urban areas where competition with other endemic ants has been mitigated due to their inability to adapt to anthropogenically altered urban spaces. 

Thanks for the read!

I tend to refer to them as "Disturbed habitat specialists" due to there ability to quickly colonize and dominate any area which is disturbed to any significant degree.

[PurdueEntomology]

 

Tapinoma sessile was fist described by Say in 1836 and is an endemic of North America, it has a range from the Yucatan up along the Eastern US into Canada (Nova Scotia, New Brunswick). across the Mississippi and the US-Canadian  Great Plains, the Rocky Mountains across to the West Coast down the Baja Coast to up to British Columbia.  It is a "nuisance" pest, not a medical pest or crop pest.  Approximately 25% of all  pest control "ant calls" across the Continental USA in structures are T. sessile.  I am looking to see if it is one monolithic trans-continental species or is a population of more than one species, externally almost indistinguishable yet genetically different enough to be considered separate species, that is what "crysis" is, as I used it in my initial post thread. Mitochondrial DNA is matrilineally transmitted, i.e., it comes only via the mother because mitochondria are found externally to the nucleus (nuclear DNA most of us are familiar with in basic high school biology) in the cytoplasm and thus is passed through cytoplasm as egg cells divide,  and unlike nuclear DNA has a more rapid mutation rate so is good, relatively speaking, in doing initial population studies to show divergences and possible speciation and  in the past two decades Mitochondrial DNA has been a go to. There has been only one confirmed introduction of this ant outside it's native range, the big island of Hawaii.  There was a report of it being introduced into three east coastal provinces of mainland China and Taiwan but these are not substantiated to date. Unfortunately the fact is often times Chinese research is a bit unreliable.  This is an academic fact not a prejudice on my part.  It has what are known as invasive sydrome phenotypic plasticities and thus has the potential of becoming a global invasive, but to date that has not happened.  This means it can easily adjust itself to new environments and successfully establish as a dominant species, even in its own native range, especially in urban areas where competition with other endemic ants has been mitigated due to their inability to adapt to anthropogenically altered urban spaces. 

Thanks for the read!

I tend to refer to them as "Disturbed habitat specialists" due to there ability to quickly colonize and dominate any area which is disturbed to any significant degree.

 

Ohhh, I like that, I may use that with your permission in the future.  

[gcsnelling]

 

 

Tapinoma sessile was fist described by Say in 1836 and is an endemic of North America, it has a range from the Yucatan up along the Eastern US into Canada (Nova Scotia, New Brunswick). across the Mississippi and the US-Canadian  Great Plains, the Rocky Mountains across to the West Coast down the Baja Coast to up to British Columbia.  It is a "nuisance" pest, not a medical pest or crop pest.  Approximately 25% of all  pest control "ant calls" across the Continental USA in structures are T. sessile.  I am looking to see if it is one monolithic trans-continental species or is a population of more than one species, externally almost indistinguishable yet genetically different enough to be considered separate species, that is what "crysis" is, as I used it in my initial post thread. Mitochondrial DNA is matrilineally transmitted, i.e., it comes only via the mother because mitochondria are found externally to the nucleus (nuclear DNA most of us are familiar with in basic high school biology) in the cytoplasm and thus is passed through cytoplasm as egg cells divide,  and unlike nuclear DNA has a more rapid mutation rate so is good, relatively speaking, in doing initial population studies to show divergences and possible speciation and  in the past two decades Mitochondrial DNA has been a go to. There has been only one confirmed introduction of this ant outside it's native range, the big island of Hawaii.  There was a report of it being introduced into three east coastal provinces of mainland China and Taiwan but these are not substantiated to date. Unfortunately the fact is often times Chinese research is a bit unreliable.  This is an academic fact not a prejudice on my part.  It has what are known as invasive sydrome phenotypic plasticities and thus has the potential of becoming a global invasive, but to date that has not happened.  This means it can easily adjust itself to new environments and successfully establish as a dominant species, even in its own native range, especially in urban areas where competition with other endemic ants has been mitigated due to their inability to adapt to anthropogenically altered urban spaces. 

Thanks for the read!

I tend to refer to them as "Disturbed habitat specialists" due to there ability to quickly colonize and dominate any area which is disturbed to any significant degree.

 

Ohhh, I like that, I may use that with your permission in the future.  

 

You are certainly welcome to use it.