Sericomyrmex is a genus of fungus-growing ants in the subfamily Myrmicinae.
Description Workers are up to 4 mm long. They are more diurnal than other fungus growers, but also work a little at night. Winged forms were found during July.Urich 1895, in: Wheeler 1925
Habitat In young colonies this leads to a small chamber about 15 cm below, which is situated to the right or left of a gallery. When the colony increases new chambers are formed by piercing through the first. Colonies do not exceed 200 individuals, and a nest thus consists of up to three fungus-growing chambers opening into the first one, which is then used as an antechamber, where material brought in by workers is deposited prior to bringing it into the growth chambers, which are about 6 cm in diameter. Small roots growing into them are not cut away but used to hang the gardens on, which resemble a coarse grey sponge.
Scattered throughout this mass are adults, pupae and larvae. White bodies of about .25 mm are strewn thickly upon the surface of the garden, which consist of an aggregation of hyphae with spherical swellings at the end. These bodies, called "Kohlrabi" clumps by Möller, are used for food by the ants. When held in artificial nests, they preferred fruits, especially oranges over other matter like flowers, leaves, and even the organic glue from the back of an old book, which they will all put to use. Of the oranges they take very small particles of the white skin.
Behavior The queens appear to mate with only one male during their nuptial flights.
Example species The nests of S. urichi are most often found in the grass, and can be easily recognized by their peculiar raised entrance. They are always excavated in soil rich in clay, and the cylindrical entrances raise almost 3 cm above the surface.
S. diego from Colombia was found to build a fungus garden about 20 cm below the surface. Workers feign death when encountered. They collect little green vegetable particles resembling an alga, on which they grow their fungus.Forel 1896, in: Wheeler 1925
S. zacapanus was first found on the clay banks of a small irrigation ditch in an orchard at Zacapa, Guatemala. The nests had small craters of about 6 cm diameter and were covered with the ejected fragments of old fungus substrate.Wheeler 1911, in: Wheeler, 1925
S. impexus was found in a sandy area at Kartabo, Guyana, to which S. amabilis from Panama is very closely related.Wheeler, 1925
Species
Sericomyrmex amabilis Wheeler, 1925 Sericomyrmex aztecus Forel, 1885 Sericomyrmex beniensis Weber, 1938 Sericomyrmex bondari Borgmeier, 1937 Sericomyrmex burchelli Forel, 1905 Sericomyrmex diego Forel, 1912 — Colombia Sericomyrmex harekulli Weber, 1937 Sericomyrmex impexus Wheeler, 1925 — Guyana Sericomyrmex luederwaldti Santschi, 1925 Sericomyrmex lutzi Wheeler, 1916 Sericomyrmex maravalhas Ješovnik & Schultz, 2017 Sericomyrmex mayri Forel, 1912 Sericomyrmex moreirai Santschi, 1925 Sericomyrmex myersi Weber, 1937 Sericomyrmex opacus Mayr, 1865 Sericomyrmex parvulus Forel, 1912 Sericomyrmex radioheadi Ješovnik & Schultz, 2017 — Venezuela Sericomyrmex saramama Ješovnik & Schultz, 2017 Sericomyrmex saussurei Emery, 1894 Sericomyrmex scrobifer Forel, 1911 Sericomyrmex urichi Forel, 1912 Sericomyrmex zacapanus Wheeler, 1925 — Guatemala
Footnotes
References
ITIS: Sericomyrmex species list