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Apterostigma
Sign in to saveApterostigma is a genus of New World ants of the subfamily Myrmicinae. Two species have been described from fossils preserved in Dominican amber, while the others are extant. They are fungus-growing ants, though, unlike the majority of other species in Attini who grow Lepiotaceae, some species have begun cultivating Tricholomataceae.
Species
GENUS
- KingdomAnimalia
- PhylumArthropoda
- ClassInsecta
- OrderHymenoptera
- FamilyFormicidae
Apterostigma (лат.) — род муравьёв трибы грибководов Attini из подсемейства Myrmicinae. Характерны своим тесным симбиозом с грибами. Семьи малочисленные (пара десятков особей). Мелкие мономорфные муравьи, тело гладкое (без шипиков и отростков), покрыто многочисленными волосками. Стебелёк между грудкой и брюшком состоит из двух члеников: петиолюса и постпетиолюса (последний чётко отделён от брюшка), жало развито, куколки голые (без кокона). Гнездо состоит из нескольких камер для грибных садов. В качестве субстрата для грибницы используют фекалии насекомых и кусочки древесины, в которой гнездятся. На личинках Apterostigma dentigerum паразитируют мухи Pseudogaurax paratolmos (Diptera: Chloropidae)
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- Distribution
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Apterostigma is a genus of New World ants of the subfamily Myrmicinae. Two species have been described from fossils preserved in Dominican amber, while the others are extant. They are fungus-growing ants, though, unlike the majority of other species in Attini who grow Lepiotaceae, some species have begun cultivating Tricholomataceae.
== History == The genus Apterostigma was described by Gustav Mayr (1865), from winged male and female specimens collected in southern Brazil. It is a New World ant belonging to the Attina Subtribe (fungivorous ants), since they maintain the ant-fungus mutualism, where various species belonging to this subfamily use fungi from the Lepiotaceae family. The fungus decomposes the litter (vegetable material collected by the ants, used as a substrate), however, this is not the case of the genus Apterostigma, since it has been found that it cultivates a pterulaceous fungus of the Tricholomataceae family, which is given as a substrate. woody matter and insect excretions, along with some bits of leaf litter.
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