Leptomyrmex sp. (genus)

Spider ant at Numeralla, NSW

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Identification history

	Leptomyrmex sp. (genus)	17 Mar 2022	JonLewis
	Leptomyrmex erythrocephalus	13 Mar 2022	SteveBorkowskis

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User's notes

I’m guessing this may be a Leptomyrmex erythrocephalus Queen? Attracted to UV light.

1 comment

JonLewis wrote:

17 Mar 2022

Hi Steve, I think you are right about the genus - the very long thin legs, the long head and long projecting mandibles all point to Leptomyrmex. I'm pretty sure this is a male rather than a queen, and there is very little information on males to allow us to ID it to species. There are at least three species of Leptomyrmex we could get where you found this ant, including L. erythrocephalus, L. wiburdi and L nigriventris. Interestingly, though, if it was a queen, we could be sure of one thing - it can't be Leptomyrmex erythrocephalus, as this is one of the species in this genus which has "ergatoid" queens, which means the queens don't have wings, they just have to walk everywhere when they leave the nest to find a mate! There is some interesting reading at https://www.antwiki.org/wiki/Leptomyrmex_erythrocephalus. Good sighting. Cheers, Jon

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Location information

Places Numeralla, NSW

Sighting information

1 Abundance
SteveBorkowskis Recorded by
Collections
SteveBorkowskis Canberra & Southern Tablelands NatureMapr Ants (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) Insects

Additional information

12mm to 25mm Animal size

Species information

Leptomyrmex sp. (genus) Scientific name
Spider ant Common name
Not Sensitive
Local native
Non-invasive or negligible
Up to 1129m Recorded at altitude
Machine learning
External link More information

Record quality

Images or audio
More than one media file
Verified by an expert moderator
Nearby sighting(s) of same species
GPS evidence of location
Description
Additional attributes

Australian Capital Territory

New South Wales

Queensland

Northern Territory

Western Australia

South Australia

Victoria

Tasmania