Taxonomic Studies of Ants Species Collected in Khartoum State

106 Pages·2006·1.54 MB·English

Taxonomic Studies of Ants Species
Collected in Khartoum State

By:
Awatif Khidir Omer Yousif El Hag

A Thesis Submitted to the Department of Zoology infulfillment
Master of Science in Zoology

Zoology Department, Faculty of Science
University of Khartoum
December, 200

© Awatif Khidir Omer
Dedication

To soul of my brother
To my Beloved Family

Awatif

I
Acknowledgements

It gives me a great pleasure to thank all those who
contributed advice and help in this work. It is appropriate to
mention several people who made suggestions, and provided
editing.
Deep gratitude is due to my supervisor Dr. Tigani
M.H.Allam for his help, discussions and encouragement, thanks
go to Dr. Sumaia Abukashwa for her help and advice.
I would like to express my gratitude to Al-Zubair
Mohammed Salih Prize for Innovation and Scientific Excellence
for generous financial support.
I am greatly indebted to Marcus Stuben (University of
Wurzburg Germany, for providing me with some books and
articles which were not available in Sudan.
Many thanks to Dr. Mustafa Rizig from Egypt for his kind
assistance, provision of books, and journals, for his keen
guidance encouragement and his promise to help to put in the
name of Sudan at the website of ants, thanks go to Dr.
Collingwood of Liverpool Museum who identified some of the
ants to species level.
Of the all, thanks are especially extending to Dr. Brian
Taylor (University of Nottingham- UK) for his great assistance
in identification some of the ants to species level.
II
Also thanks to Dr. Brian Fisher (California Academy of
Sciences-USA), who identified some ants to the species level
and imaged the ants to put it at the website www.antweb.org as
ants of Sudan.
I thank also Dr. Donat Agosti (American Musem of
Natural History and Smithsonian Institution) who sent me the
satellite map of Khartoum State, and thanks to his wife Livia
Agosti (Deputy Head of the Political Affairs Division II
African/Middle East) for delivering my specimens to Dr. Brain
Fisher.
Thanks to the Remote Sensing Centre (University of
Khartoum) for locating collection site of the specimen in
satellite map.
Thanks to Dr. Abdullah Gomaa who gave me the GPS
(Global Position System), to Dr. Zuhair Nour Eldeim for his
advice and to Dr. Omran Fadl for his help.
Not least but last, thanks are due to my colleagues in the
Sudan Institute for Natural Sciences (SIFNS) for their
encouragement and help with typing the thesis.
III
Table of Contents
Contents Page
Dedication……………………………………………………..……. I
Acknowledgements………………………..…………………….….. II
Table of Contents……………………………………………………. IV
List of Tables…………………………………………..………........ IX
List of Figures……………………………………..…………….….. X
List of Plates………………………………………………………… XI
list of Appendices
XIII
................................................................................
Abstract………………………………………….…………….……. XIV
Chapter 1: Introduction………………...…………………….… 1
1
1.1. Social Organization…………………….………………..……..
1.2. Feeding ………………………………………………...…. 2
1.3. Objective of this study ……………………………………..….. 3
Chapter 2: Literature Review…………………………..…………..... 4
2.1. The Importance of ants ………………………………………… 4
2.2. Family Formicidae 5
…………………………………………….
2.2.1. Main Differential Anatomical Features of 5
Formicidae……..
2.2.2. Taxonomy …………………………………………….…… 10
2.2.3. The Classification and Origin 10
………………………………
2.2.4. Subfamilies 11
…………………………………………………
IV
2.3. The Ants of Sudan 15
………………………………………………
2.3.1. History and Geography 15
…………………………………..
2.4. Genera 18
………………………………………………………….
2.4.1. Cardiocondyla …………………………………………….. 18
2.4.2. 18
Crematogaster………………………………………………
2.4.3. 18
Monomorium………………………………………………………
2.4.3.1. Monomorium bicolor Emery 19
(1877)……………………….
2.4.3.2. Monomorium areniphilium Santschi 19
(1911)……………..
2.4.3.3. Monomorium destrctor Jerdon (1851) ……………….. 19
2.4.3.4. Monomorium mayri Forel (1902) …………………….. 19
2.4.3.5. Monomorium salomonis Linnaeus (1758) ……………. 20
2.4.4. Pheidole …………………………………………………… 20
2.4.5. Tetramorium …………………………………………………….. 20
2.4.5.1. Tetramorium sericeiventris Emery 21
(1877)………….……..
2.4.6. Camponotus …………………………………………….….. 21
2.4.6.1.Camponotus (Tanaemyrmex) maculates Fabricius (1781) 21
2.4.6.2.Camponotus (Orthonotomyrmex)sericeus Fabricius 21
(1798)…………………………………………………
…
V
2.4.7. Cataglyphis 22
……………………………………………………….
2.4.8. Lepisiota 22
………………………………………………………….
2.4.9. Paratrechina 22
……………………………………………………..
2.4.10. Anochetus 22
……………………………………………………….
2.4.1.1. Pachycondyla ………………….………………………… 23
2.5. 23
Karyotyping………………………………………………………
2.5.1. Chromosomes 23
………………………………………………
2.5.2. Somatic chromosomes 24
……………………………………..
2.5.3. Karyotypes ………………………………………………… 24
2.5.3.1. Karyotpye Study of Ants 24
Chromosomes………………...
2.5.3.2. Karyotpye study of Genus Camponotus 24
………………….
Chapter 3: Material and Methods…………………..………………… 30
3.1. Collection 30
Sites……………………………………………...……
VI
3.2. Specimen collection 32
……………………………………….…….
3.3. Key used in identification 32
………………………………..………
3.4. Karyotyping 32
…………………………………………….………..
Chapter 4: 34
Results……………………………………….…..………….
4.1. Subfamily: Myrmicinae 37
…………………………………….……
4.1.1. Genus: Cardiocondyla ………………..…………………… 37
4.1.1.1. Characteristics 37
…………………………………….…….
4.1.1.2. Cardiocondyla emeryi Forel (1881) 37
…………………….
4.1.1.3. Cardiocondyla elegans Emery (1969) 37
……………….…
4.1.2. Genus: Crematogaster ……... 39
……………….……………..
4.1.2.1. Characteristics 39
……………………………………………….
4.1.2.2. Crematogaster mimosae Santschi 1914 39
…………….…..
4.1.3. Genus: Monomorium 39
……………………………………….
4.1.3.1. Characteristics 39
……………………………………………….
4.1.3.2. Monomorium bicolor Emery (1877) 39
VII
……………………
4.1.3.3. Monomorium areniphilum Santschi 41
(1911)…………..…
4.1.3.4. Monomorium destructor Jerdon 41
(1851)…………….…..
4.1.3.5. Monomorium mayri Forel (1902) 41
………………….…..
4.1.3.6. Monomorium salomonis Linnaeus (1758) 41
……………..
4.1.4. Genus: Pheidole 41
……………………………………….……
4.1.4.1.Characteristics 41
………………………………………………..
4.1.4.2. Pheidole sinaitica Mayr (1862) 42
………………………..
4.1.4.3. Pheidole pallidula Nylander (1849) 42
…………………….
4.1.4.4. Pheidole indica Mayr 42
1879………………….…………
4.1.5.Genus: Tetramorium 44
……………………………….………..
4.1.5.1.Characteristics 44
………………………………………………..
4.1.5.2. Tetramorium sericeventre Emery 44
(1877)………………..
4.2. Subfamily: Formicinae 44
……………………………………..……
4.2.1. Genus: 44
Camponotus……………………………………….……..
VIII
4.2.1.1.Characteristics 44
……………………………………………….
4.2.1.2. Camponotus oasium Forel (1890)……………………… 45
4.2.1.3.Camponotus (Tanaemyrmex) maculatus Fabricius 45
(1781). …………………………………………………
4.2.1.4.Camponotus (Orthonomyrmex)sericeus Fabricius 45
(1798).
4.2.1.5. Camponotus (Myrmopiromis) niveoetosus Mayr (1862). 45
4.2.1.6. Camponotus species 45
5.…………………………………..
4.2.1.7. Camponotus species 6. 45
………………………………….
4.2.2. Genus: 47
Cataglyphis………………………………………….
4.2.2.1. Characteristics ………………………………………….. 47
4.2.2.2. Cataglyphis desertorum Forel 47
(1894)……………………...
4.2.2.3. Cataglphis lividus Andre (1881) …………….………… 47
4.2.3. Genus: Lepisiota………………………………………………… 47
4.2.3.1. 47
Characteristics………………………………………………..
4.2.3.2. Lepisiota gracilicornis Forel 1892 48
……………………..
4.2.3.3. Lepisiota semenovi Ruzsky (1905) ……………………. 48
4.2.4. Genus: Paratrechina 48
………………………..………………
4.2.4.1. Characteristics ………………………………………….. 48
4.2.4.2. Paratrechina longicornis Latreille (1802) ………..……. 48
4.3. Subfamily: Ponerinae 51
IX