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Sphecomyrmex: Camponotus (Karavaievia) (7. Mär 2008 18:26)

I've found an article, from the "Myrmecologische Nachrichten", on the subgenus Camponotus (Karavaievia), that comprise 18 species of weaver ants diffused in rainforest from Thailandia to Malaysia. I think it is very interesting :-)

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Klaus DUMPERT, Ulrich MASCHWITZ & Andreas WEISSFLOG; Description of five new weaver ant species of Camponotus subgenus Karavaievia EMERY, 1925 (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) from Malaysia and Thailand, with contribution to their biology, especially to colony foundation, Myrmecologische Nachrichten, n. 8, pages 69-82; settember 2006.

Five new species of Camponotus (Karavaievia) are described (workers and gynes of all species, male of C. weissflogi): Camponotus (Karavaievia) aureus DUMPERT sp.n., C. (K.) hoelldobleri DUMPERT sp.n., C. (K.) maschwitzi DUMPERT sp.n., C. (K.) schoedli DUMPERT sp.n., and C. (K.) weissflogi DUMPERT sp.n. A key is provided for determination of
all the hitherto known 18 species of the subgenus Karavaievia. As far as known, all Karavaievia species are weaver ants, producing multiple carton-silk pavilions beneath or between leaves of woody plants. All pavilions of the populous monogynous colonies contain brood and trophobiotic hemipterans. Colonies of this type of nests can only exist on plants that do not shed their foliage synchronously and frequently, i.e., on plants predominantly found in the perhumid zone. Correspondingly, most species have been recorded only from evergreen rainforests of Southeast Asia. Only few live further northwards in the semi-evergreen Dipterocarp1 rainforests. Colony founding queens of two species were found within nest pavilions of a canopy-living Monomorium species.
This indicates a mode of dependent colony foundation within pavilions of carton nest building canopy ants. Possible consequences of this mode of colony-foundation for rareness and diversification of Karavaievia are discussed.
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miszt: (7. Mär 2008 18:28)

Nice artical :-) i've always been insterested in how diffrent species use silk to create nests, there are some beautiful designs, many use it simply as a lining to their nest aswell

Sphecomyrmex: (7. Mär 2008 18:58)

Weaver ants are very interesting for me too :-)

I have not understand some parts of this article...what are "canopy-living" Monomorium species? Some things aren't too clarity...For example, how the karavaievia ants trasform the carton-nest of monomorium into a nest of silk and leaves?

miszt: (7. Mär 2008 19:06)

check out my answer to your Canopy Ants thread Sphec, that should answer your question about Canopy living, heres a picture of the Jungle Canopy...

http://homepages.paradise.net.nz/hellyer/images/Rainforeststrata.jpg

They live in the 2nd from top layer

You are misunderstanding the artical a bit, these ants use silk to create carton nests, using silk and leaves

Sphecomyrmex: (7. Mär 2008 19:21)

Thanks very much miszt :-)

Monomorium canopy ants create the carton nest without the silk, then karavaievia ants occupe the carton nest and they use leaves and silk for repeare it, they don't? Because monomorium don't use silk...?

JimmyVe: (8. Mär 2008 19:39)

Very interesting and helpful (great job you are doing guy's). I myself don't know much about weaver ants so i like this topic very much. ;)

Necturus: (8. Mär 2008 21:08)

Not to kill the mood, but you didnt post the article, but the abstract of the paper, a short summation of what it is about.
Full papers can be viewed here: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?db=pubmed&cmd=search&term=
Some are full text, some abstract only.
Greetings,
Necturus