Ants of the Hengduan Mountains: a new altitudinal survey and updated checklist for Yunnan Province highlight an understudied insect biodiversity hotspot

Cong Liu; Georg Fischer; Francisco Hita Garcia; Seiki Yamane; Qing Liu; Yan Qiong Peng; Evan P. Economo; Benoit Guénard; Naomi E. Pierce

doi:10.3897/zookeys.978.55767

Research Article

Ants of the Hengduan Mountains: a new altitudinal survey and updated checklist for Yunnan Province highlight an understudied insect biodiversity hotspot

Cong Liu^‡, Georg Fischer^§, Francisco Hita Garcia^§, Seiki Yamane^|, Qing Liu^¶, Yan Qiong Peng^#, Evan P. Economo^§, Benoit Guénard^¤, Naomi E. Pierce^‡

‡ Harvard University, Cambridge, United States of America

§ Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University, Onna, Japan

| Kagoshima University, Korimoto, Japan

¶ Baoshan University, Baoshan, China

# Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, China

¤ The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China

Corresponding author: Cong Liu ( cong.liu0514@gmail.com )

Academic editor: Brian Lee Fisher

This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

Citation: Liu C, Fischer G, Garcia FH, Yamane S, Liu Q, Peng YQ, Economo EP, Guénard B, Pierce NE (2020) Ants of the Hengduan Mountains: a new altitudinal survey and updated checklist for Yunnan Province highlight an understudied insect biodiversity hotspot. ZooKeys 978: 1-171. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.978.55767

ZooBank: urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:22FD7CAE-43AF-4D3E-99FC-D7F055C552C

Abstract

China’s Hengduan Mountain region has been considered one of the most diverse regions in the northern hemisphere. Its stunning topography with many deep valleys and impassable mountain barriers has promoted an astonishing diversification in many groups of organisms including plants, birds, mammals, and amphibians. However, the insect biodiversity in this region is still poorly known. Here, the first checklist of ant species from the Southern Hengduan Mountain region is presented, generated by sampling ant diversity using a wide array of collection methods, including Winkler leaf litter extraction, vegetation beating, and hand collection. 130 species/morphospecies from nine subfamilies and 49 genera were identified. Among them, 17 species from 13 genera represent new records for Yunnan province, and eight species are newly recorded for China. Moreover, we believe 41 novel morphospecies (31% of the total collected taxa) will prove to be new to science. These results highlight the rich ant fauna of this region and strongly support its status as a biodiversity hotspot. The current ant species checklist for the whole of Yunnan Province was updated by recording 550 named species from 99 genera. Taken together, our results suggest that the Yunnan ant fauna still remains under-sampled, and future sampling will likely yield many more species, among them many undescribed ones.

Keywords

biodiversity hotspot, checklist, China, Formicidae, Hengduan Mountains, new records, species

Introduction

The Hengduan Mountain region, located in the southeastern part of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, is one of the 35 recognized biodiversity hotspots in the world (Myers et al. 2000). The unique landscape, geomorphology, microhabitat differentiation and geographic isolation created by tectonic uplift during the last eight million years has promoted an astonishing diversification in many groups of organisms, making this region one of the most diverse temperate regions in the northern hemisphere (Boufford 2014; Price et al 2014; Xing and Ree 2017). For example, it harbors nearly 40 percent of China’s vascular plant diversity (ca. 12,000 species), including more than 3,000 endemic species (Boufford 2014). However, aside from the well-documented plants and some vertebrates, the diversity of other groups, especially invertebrates in this region remains largely unknown. Insect taxonomic groups in particular have received limited attention, and our understanding of their diversity in the Hengduan Mountains is extremely fragmented.

Ants are an ecologically dominant component of many ecosystems in terms of their abundance, richness, and ecosystem function (Hölldobler and Wilson 1990). Globally, about 15,600 ant species and subspecies have been described (Bolton 2020), making them the most diverse group of social insects and one of the most diverse families of insects. Despite the fact that ant diversity is mainly concentrated within tropical regions (Dunn et al. 2009; Guénard et al. 2012; Economo et al. 2018), the ant fauna of many other regions is still poorly known, especially in Asia (Guénard et al. 2010). Compiling and curating comprehensive and accurate ant species checklists for these regions is essential not only for insights into ant taxonomy and systematics, but also for long-term monitoring and conservation of these ecosystems (Guénard et al. 2017). The goal of this study is to provide a better understanding of the poorly known ant biodiversity in China’s Hengduan Mountains. The ultra-variable topography of this region, ideal for creating numerous vicariance events, combined with its wide range of climatic zones has contributed to the exceptional richness of endemic species inhabiting this area. Nevertheless, the rough topography has also made access and exploration rather challenging in the past. Against the background of extraordinary levels of plant diversity harbored by the Hengduan Mountains, it remains unclear whether or not ants and other insects display similar patterns of high diversity and endemism in this region.

To address this gap, we here present the results of an ant biodiversity survey conducted in the Gaoligong Shan mountains (part of the Hengduan Mountains), Yunnan Province, southwest China undertaken in 2019. Our goal is to present a complete species checklist of ants from the Gaoligong Mountains, including new records, as well as to update the current ant species checklist for the whole of Yunnan Province.

The Gaoligong Shan mountains (lat. 24°560'–28°220'N, long. 98°080'–98°500'E) comprise the western-most part of the Hengduan Mountain Range, and are among the most biodiversity-rich areas in Yunnan (Li et al. 2008; Dumbecher et al. 2011; Lo and Bi 2019). The ant fauna in the Gaoligong Shan mountains remains poorly understood, despite several studies focusing on ant diversity patterns that have recorded 62 ant species from 31 genera (Xu 2001a, b), but lack a comprehensive list of species collected.

Yunnan province is the richest province of China in terms of ant diversity (Guénard and Dunn 2012). The latest ant checklist of Yunnan was compiled almost 10 years ago and consisted of 462 ant species. Since then, new ant inventories have been conducted (e.g. Liu et al. 2015a), as well as new species descriptions (e.g., Guénard et al. 2013; Xu et al. 2014a, b; Liu et al. 2015b; Staab et al. 2018), and the identification of previously dubious records have sensibly modified our understanding of Yunnan’s ant diversity and species composition. Therefore, in this study, we also provide an update to the ant species checklist of Yunnan province and discuss future trends.

Materials and methods

Ant specimens were collected from natural forests along an elevational gradient on both the eastern and western slopes of the Gaoligong Mountains in July 2019. We sampled leaf litter ants from 16 sites at roughly 150 m elevational intervals from 600 m to 3000 m, following the standardized sampling protocol developed in Liu et al. 2016. At each site, we established a 400 m² quadrat (20 m × 20 m) and collected leaf litter samples at the four corners of the quadrat (1 m²). We also collected leaf litter within the quadrat to cover a variety of microhabitats. Finally, ants on the ground, lower vegetation, and tree branches were collected both by hand and using a beating sheet. Leaf litter samples were extracted using mini Winkler extractors for 72 hours using the shuffling method described in Guénard and Lucky (2011).

Ant specimens were first placed in 99% ethanol and later sorted into morphospecies and point mounted. Each mounted specimen was assigned a unique Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard University (MCZ) specimen code and collection labels. Extended depth of field specimen images were taken with a Leica DFC400 digital camera mounted on a Leica M205C stereomicroscope through the Leica Application Suite V4 software in the Ant Room at the MCZ. Specimens were identified to species / morphospecies using available keys, the digital resources on Antwiki (http://www.antwiki.org) and AntWeb (http://www.antweb.org), as well as reference museum material. All mounted and alcohol-preserved ant specimens are currently deposited in the Ant Room of the MCZ.

Distribution maps of species were generated from records included within the Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics (GABI) database and available at https://antmaps.org (Janicki et al, 2016; Guénard et al. 2017). These maps are based on records reported at the country level, or at the first administrative division for the larger countries (China, India, Japan). For larger islands that form their own natural biogeographic units like Borneo, Sumatra, New Guinea, the distribution maps used the island boundary instead of political boundaries (see also Guénard et al. 2012).

Results

Ants of the Hengduan Mountain region

More than 3000 specimens were collected during this survey, and 130 species and morphospecies in 49 genera and nine subfamilies were identified. After identification of 88 valid species from the 130 total collected species, a total of 17 new species records are presented for Yunnan province and eight represent new records for China (see Table 1). The newly recorded species belong to 13 genera from four subfamilies. Moreover, the 41 morphospecies that could not be identified are likely to represent new species.

Table 1.

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List of ant species (Formicidae) in the Gaoligong Shan mountains, Yunnan with their respective illustrations. * New to Yunnan province; **New to China.

Species	Figure
Dorylinae
Aenictus artipus Wilson, 1964	Fig. 1
** Aenictus brevinodus Jaitrong & Yamane, 2011	Fig. 2
Aenictus hodgsoni Forel, 1901	Fig. 3
Aenictus paradentatus Jaitrong, Yamane & Tasen, 2012	Fig. 4
* Aenictus watanasiti Jaitrong & Yamane, 2013	Fig. 5
Cerapachys sulcinodis Emery, 1889	Fig. 6
Cerapachys sp. clm01	Fig. 7
Chrysapace costatus (Bharti & Wachkoo, 2013)	Fig. 8
Dorylus orientalis Westwood, 1835	Figs 9, 10
Ooceraea biroi (Forel, 1907)	Fig. 11
Amblyoponinae
Stigmatomma octodentatum (Xu, 2006)	Fig. 12
Dolichoderinae
Dolichoderus feae Emery, 1889	Fig. 13
Dolichoderus squamanodus Xu, 2001	Fig. 14
Dolichoderus taprobanae (Smith, 1858)	Fig. 15
Ochetellus glaber (Mayr, 1862)	Fig. 16
Tapinoma melanocephalum (Fabricius, 1793)	Fig. 17
Ectatomminae
Gnamptogenys quadrutinodules Chen, Lattke & Zhou, 2017	Fig. 18
Formicinae
Anoplolepis gracilipes (Smith, 1857)	Fig. 19
** Camponotus bellus leucodiscus Wheeler, 1919	Fig. 20
** Camponotus keihitoi Forel, 1913	Fig. 21
Camponotus lasiselene Wang & Wu, 1994	Figs 22, 23
Camponotus mitis (Smith, 1858)	Fig. 24
Camponotus nicobarensis Mayr, 1865	Fig. 25
Camponotus sp. clm01	Fig. 26
Camponotus sp. clm02	Fig. 27
Camponotus sp. clm03	Fig. 28
Camponotus sp. clm04	Fig. 29
Camponotus sp. clm05	Fig. 30
Formica cunicularia Latreille, 1798	Fig. 31
Formica japonica Motschoulsky, 1866	Fig. 32
* Lasius obscuratus Stitz, 1930	Fig. 33
* Lasius himalayanus Bingham, 1903	Fig. 34
Nylanderia bourbonica (Forel, 1886)	Fig. 35
Nylanderia sp. clm01	Fig. 36
Nylanderia sp. clm02	Fig. 37
Oecophylla smaragdina (Fabricius, 1775)	Fig. 38
Paraparatrechina sakurae (Ito, 1914)	Fig. 39
Paraparatrechina sp. clm01	Fig. 40
Paraparatrechina sp. clm02	Fig. 41
Polyrhachis armata (Le Guillou, 1842)	Fig. 42
Polyrhachis bihamata (Drury, 1773)	Fig. 43
Polyrhachis dives Smith, 1857	Fig. 44
Polyrhachis furcata Smith, 1858	Fig. 45
Polyrhachis halidayi Emery, 1889	Fig. 46
Polyrhachis illaudata Walker, 1859	Fig. 47
Polyrhachis laevigata Smith, 1857	Fig. 48
Polyrhachis tibialis Smith, 1858	Fig. 49
* Prenolepis angularis Zhou, 2001	Fig. 50
* Prenolepis fustinoda Williams & LaPolla, 2016	Fig. 51
Prenolepis sp. clm01	Fig. 52
Prenolepis sp. clm02	Fig. 53
Pseudolasius emeryi Forel, 1915	Fig. 54
Pseudolasius silvestrii Wheeler, 1927	Fig. 55
Myrmicinae
Aphaenogaster feae Emery, 1889	Fig. 56
Aphaenogaster sp. clm01	Fig. 57
Aphaenogaster sp. clm02	Fig. 58
Aphaenogaster sp. clm03	Fig. 59
Aphaenogaster sp. clm04	Fig. 60
Aphaenogaster sp. clm05	Fig. 61
* Cardiocondyla itsukii Seifert, Okita & Heinze, 2017	Fig. 62
Cardiocondyla sp. clm01	Fig. 63
Carebara acutispina (Xu, 2003)	Fig. 64
Carebara affinis (Jerdon, 1851)	Fig. 65
Carebara altinoda (Xu, 2003)	Fig. 66
Carebara bihornata (Xu, 2003)	Fig. 67
Carebara sp. clm01	Fig. 68
* Cataulacus marginatus Bolton, 1974	Fig. 69
Crematogaster quadriruga Forel, 1911	Fig. 70
Crematogaster sp. clm01	Fig. 71
Crematogaster sp. clm02	Fig. 72
** Dilobocondyla eguchii Bharti & Kumar, 2013	Fig. 73
Gaoligongidris planodorsa Xu, 2012	Fig. 74
Gauromyrmex sp. clm01	Fig. 75
Lordomyrma sp. clm01	Fig. 76
Monomorium pharaonis (Linnaeus, 1758)	Fig. 77
Monomorium sp. clm01	Fig. 78
Myrmica draco Radchenko, Zhou & Elmes, 2001	Fig. 79
Myrmica pleiorhytida Radchenko & Elmes, 2009	Fig. 80
Myrmica sp. clm01	Fig. 81
Myrmecina sp. clm01	Fig. 82
Myrmecina sp. clm02	Fig. 83
Myrmecina sp. clm03	Fig. 84
Pheidole allani Bingham, 1903	Figs 85, 86
Pheidole fervens Smith, 1858	Fig. 87
Pheidole fervida Smith, 1874	Fig. 88, 89
Pheidole gatesi (Wheeler, 1927)	Fig. 90
Pheidole indica Mayr, 1879	Fig. 91
Pheidole magna Eguchi, 2006	Figs 92, 93
* Pheidole nodifera (Smith 1858)	Fig. 94
Pheidole zoceana Santschi, 1925	Figs 95, 96
Pristomyrmex brevispinosus Emery, 1887	Fig. 97
Pristomyrmex hamatus Xu & Zhang, 2002	Fig. 98
Stenamma wumengense Liu & Xu, 2011	Fig. 99
Strumigenys assamensis De Andrade, 1994	Fig. 100
Strumigenys strygax Bolton, 2000	Fig. 101
** Strumigenys taphra (Bolton, 2000)	Fig. 102
Strumigenys sp. clm01	Fig. 103
Strumigenys sp. clm02	Fig. 104
Strumigenys sp. clm03	Fig. 105
* Temnothorax striatus Zhou, Huang, Yu & Liu, 2010	Fig. 106
Temnothorax sp. clm01	Fig. 107
Temnothorax sp. clm03	Fig. 108
Tetramorium tonganum Mayr, 1870	Fig. 109
Tetramorium sp. clm01	Fig. 110
Tetramorium sp. clm02	Fig. 111
Tetramorium sp. clm03	Fig. 112
Tetramorium sp. clm04	Fig. 113
Vollenhovia pyrrhoria Wu & Xiao, 1989	Fig. 114
Vollenhovia sp. clm03	Fig. 115
Ponerinae
Brachyponera luteipes (Mayr, 1862)	Fig. 116
Ectomomyrmex lobocarenus (Xu, 1995)	Fig. 117
** Ectomomyrmex obtusus Emery, 1900	Fig. 118
Hypoponera sp. clm01	Fig. 119
Hypoponera sp. clm02	Fig. 120
Hypoponera sp. clm03	Fig. 121
Leptogenys birmana Forel, 1900	Fig. 122
Leptogenys kitteli (Mayr, 1870)	Fig. 123
Odontomachus circulus Wang, 1993	Fig. 124
* Odontomachus fulgidus Wang, 1993	Fig. 125
Platythyrea parallela (Smith, 1859)	Fig. 126
Ponera bawana Xu, 2001	Fig. 127
Ponera xantha Xu, 2001	Fig. 128
Proceratinae
Discothyrea banna Xu, Burwell & Nakamura, 2014	Fig. 129
Discothyrea diana Xu, Burwell & Nakamura, 2014	Fig. 130
Proceratium longigaster Karavaiev, 1935	Fig. 131
Proceratium longmenense Xu, 2006	Fig. 132
Proceratium zhaoi Xu, 2000	Fig. 133
Pseudomyrmecinae
Tetraponera allaborans (Walker, 1859)	Fig. 134
Tetraponera attenuata Smith, 1877	Fig. 135
Tetraponera protensa Xu & Chai, 2004	Fig. 136

Within the recent collection, the most speciose ant genus is Pheidole with eleven species (8.5% of the total species collected in the survey), followed by Camponotus (ten species, 7.7%), and Polyrhachis (seven species, 5.4%). Other diverse genera include Aphaenogaster (6 species, 4.6%), Strumigenys (six species, 4.6%), Tetramorium (six species, 4.6%), Aenictus (five species, 3.8%), and Carebara (five species, 3.8%). More details are presented in Table 2.

Here, we present the list of ant species that were collected in the Gaoligong Shan mountains (Table 1), as well as images for each species (Figs 1–136).

Table 2.

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Number of ant species of per genus collected in this survey as well the total number of each species per genus in Yunnan province.

Genus	Gaoligongshan Mt.	Yunnan	Genus	Gaoligongshan Mt.	Yunnan
Camponotus	10	30	Leptogenys	2	17
Pheidole	8	42	Monomorium	2	6
Polyrhachis	8	32	Odontomachus	2	6
Aphaenogaster	6	10	Ponera	2	14
Strumigenys	6	24	Pristomyrmex	2	4
Tetramorium	5	29	Pseudolasius	2	6
Aenictus	5	19	Vollenhovia	2	3
Carebara	5	19	Anoplolepis	1	1
Prenolepis	4	7	Brachyponera	1	3
Crematogaster	3	25	Cataulacus	1	4
Dolichoderus	3	9	Chrysapace	1	1
Hypoponera	3	7	Dilobocondyla	1	3
Lasius	2	6	Dorylus	1	3
Myrmica	3	12	Gaoligongidris	1	1
Myrmecina	3	7	Gauromyrmex	1	1
Nylanderia	3	10	Gnamptogenys	1	7
Paraparatrechina	3	2	Lordomyrma	1	1
Proceratium	3	4	Ochetellus	1	1
Temnothorax	3	7	Oecophylla	1	1
Tetraponera	3	12	Ooceraea	1	1
Cardiocondyla	2	4	Platythyrea	1	2
Cerapachys	2	1	Stenamma	1	4
Discothyrea	2	3	Stigmatoma	1	11
Ectomomyrmex	2	8	Tapinoma	1	4
Formica	2	7	Total	130	550

Updated ant checklist in Yunnan

The ant species list of Yunnan Province was generated using records from GABI available at https://antmaps.org (Janicki et al. 2016; Guénard et al. 2017). In total, the Yunnan ant fauna is composed of 99 genera and 550 named species and subspecies. Among them, the ant genera Lasiomyrma, Lordomyrma, and Prionopelta are only known from unidentified morphospecies. Through our collection and the records from GABI, we have added 125 species and subspecies to the list of ants of Yunnan since the last ant checklist (Guénard et al. 2012). We also excluded 26 species records from the previous list and explained our rationale in each case (Table 3).

Table 3.

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Ant species records that have been excluded from Yunnan when compared to the previous list. The explanation “Needs verification” usually signifies that the species has never been recorded before in this region and/or is easily mistaken for another species and likely to have been misidentified. “Dubious” means that the record occurrence is highly unlikely given the known species distribution. Notes provide additional references regarding records and/or further information.

Excluded species records	Explanations	Notes
Camponotus aethiops	Needs verification	A Palearctic species with distribution in Asia needs confirmation
Camponotus spenceri	Dubious	An Australian species misreported previously
Cardiocondyla nuda	Dubious	Could be C. kagutsuchi, see Seifert 2003
Discothyrea clavicornis	Dubious	A misidentification of D. diana
Discothyrea kamiteta	Dubious	A misidentification of D. banna
Formica fusca	Needs verification	A Palearctic species with distribution in Asia needs confirmation
Hypoponera exoecata	Needs verification	Species with distribution limited to East Asia
Lasius alienus	Dubious	See Seifert 2020
Lasius emarginatus	Dubious	A West Palearctic species with distribution in Asia doubtful
Lasius fuliginosus	Dubious	See Espadaler et al. 2001
Lasius niger	Dubious	See Seifert 1992
Lasius productus	Needs verification	Species with distribution limited to Japan and the Korean Peninsula
Lasius spathepus	Needs verification	Species with distribution limited to Japan, the Korean Peninsula and Eastern Russia
Leptogenys yerburyi	Dubious	See Xu and He 2015
Myrmica inezae	Needs verification	See Chen et al. 2016.
Odontoponera transversa	Dubious	See Yamane 2009
Proceratium deelemani	Dubious	Record represented a new species subsequently described in Staab et al. 2018.
Proceratium japonicum	Dubious	A misidentification of P. longigaster
Temnothorax melleus	Needs verification	A central Asian species which presence in Yunnan requires confirmation
Tetramorium inglebyi	Dubious	An Indian species that is restricted to the Southwest.
Tetramorium globulinode	Dubious	An Afrotropical species incorrectly reported in Asia
Tetramorium khnum	Dubious	An endemic species in the Philippines
Tetramorium melleum	Dubious	A misidentification of T. wroughtonii
Tetraponera aitkenii	Dubious	Phil Ward (Personal communication, 18 August 2015)
Tetraponera nigra	Dubious	Phil Ward (Personal communication, 18 August 2015)
Vollenhovia emeryi	Dubious	See Wetterer et al. 2015

In Yunnan, the most diverse ant genus is Pheidole with 42 named species, followed by Polyrhachis (33 species), Camponotus (30 species), and Tetramorium (29 species). Other diverse genera include Crematogaster (25 species), and Strumigenys (25 species). Although 15 ant genera contain more than ten named species in Yunnan, the majority of ant genera occurring in Yunnan seem to be not particularly diverse. For example, 35 genera are represented by only one species in Yunnan (Table 4).

Table 4.

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Number of ant species (both native and exotic species) in Yunnan Province. * Ant genus only known from morphospecies records.

Genus	Native	Exotic	Genus	Native	Exotic
Pheidole	42	0	Solenopsis	2	1
Polyrhachis	32	0	Acanthomyrmex	2	0
Camponotus	30	0	Acropyga	2	0
Tetramorium	28	1	Echinopla	2	0
Crematogaster	25	0	Meranoplus	2	0
Strumigenys	24	1	Myrmoteras	2	0
Aenictus	19	0	Paraparatrechina	2	0
Carebara	19	0	Perissomyrmex	2	0
Leptogenys	17	0	Platythyrea	2	0
Ponera	14	0	Pseudoneoponera	2	0
Tetraponera	12	0	Rhopalomastix	2	0
Myrmica	12	0	Trichomyrmex	0	2
Stigmatomma	11	0	Vollenhovia	2	0
Technomyrmex	11	0	Anoplolepis	1	0
Aphaenogaster	10	0	Buniapone	1	0
Nylanderia	9	1	Centromyrmex	1	0
Dolichoderus	9	0	Cerapachys	1	0
Ectomomyrmex	8	0	Chrysapace	1	0
Lepisiota	8	0	Diacamma	1	0
Colobopsis	7	0	Emeryopone	1	0
Hypoponera	5	2	Erromyrma	1	0
Prenolepis	7	0	Euponera	1	0
Temnothorax	7	0	Gaoligongidris	1	0
Formica	7	0	Gauromyrmex	1	0
Gnamptogenys	7	0	Gesomyrmex	1	0
Myrmecina	7	0	Harpegnathos	1	0
Anochetus	6	0	Iridomyrmex	1	0
Lasius	6	0	Lasiomyrma*	1	0
Odontomachus	6	0	Liometopum	1	0
Pseudolasius	6	0	Lioponera	1	0
Cryptopone	5	0	Lordomyrma*	1	0
Monomorium	5	0	Mesoponera	1	0
Proceratium	4	0	Messor	1	0
Cataulacus	4	0	Myrmicaria	1	0
Plagiolepis	3	1	Mystrium	1	0
Pristomyrmex	4	0	Ochetellus	1	0
Protanilla	4	0	Odontoponera	1	0
Stenamma	4	0	Oecophylla	1	0
Tapinoma	4	0	Ooceraea	1	0
Brachyponera	3	0	Parasyscia	1	0
Cardiocondyla	2	1	Paratrechina	0	1
Chronoxenus	3	0	Philidris	1	0
Dilobocondyla	3	0	Prionopelta*	1	0
Discothyrea	3	0	Probolomyrmex	1	0
Dorylus	3	0	Rotastruma	1	0
Kartidris	3	0	Simopone	1	0
Leptanilla	3	0	Syscia	1	0
Lophomyrmex	3	0	Vombisidris	1	0
Myopias	3	0	Yunodorylus	1	0
Recurvidris	3	0

Figure 1.

Aenictus artipus worker (MCZ-ENT00763651) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 2.

Aenictus brevinodus worker (MCZ-ENT00763491, new to China) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 3.

Aenictus hodgsoni worker (MCZ-ENT00763191) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 4.

Aenictus paradentatus worker (MCZ-ENT00763384) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 5.

Aenictus watanasiti worker (MCZ-ENT00764608, new to Yunnan) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 6.

Cerapachys sulcinodis worker (MCZ-ENT00759751) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 7.

Cerapachys sp. clm01worker (MCZ-ENT00763371) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view.

Figure 8.

Chrysapace costatus worker (MCZ-ENT00763341) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 9.

Dorylus orientalis minor worker (MCZ-ENT00760027) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 10.

Dorylus orientalis major worker (MCZ-ENT00760028) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 11.

Ooceraea biroi worker (MCZ-ENT00759984) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 12.

Stigmatomma octodentatum worker (MCZ-ENT00759880) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 13.

Dolichoderus feae worker (MCZ-ENT00763272) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 14.

Dolichoderus squamanodus worker (MCZ-ENT00762839) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 15.

Dolichoderus taprobanae worker (MCZ-ENT00763246) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 16.

Ochetellus glaber worker (MCZ-ENT00763401) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 17.

Tapinoma melanocephalum worker (MCZ-ENT00760062) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 18.

Gnamptogenys quadrutinodules worker (MCZ-ENT00759741) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 19.

Anoplolepis gracilipes worker (MCZ-ENT00760060) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 20.

Camponotus bellus leucodiscus worker (MCZ-ENT00760068, new to China) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 21.

Camponotus keihitoi worker (MCZ-ENT00763692, new to China) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 22.

Camponotus lasiselene minor worker (MCZ-ENT00763190) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 23.

Camponotus lasiselene major worker (MCZ-ENT00763247) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 24.

Camponotus mitis worker (MCZ-ENT00763213) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 25.

Camponotus nicobarensis worker (MCZ-ENT00763198) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 26.

Camponotus sp. clm01 worker (MCZ-ENT00762843) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view.

Figure 27.

Camponotus sp. clm02 worker (MCZ-ENT00759861) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view.

Figure 28.

Camponotus sp. clm03 worker (MCZ-ENT00762821) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view.

Figure 29.

Camponotus sp. clm04 worker (MCZ-ENT00762978) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view.

Figure 30.

Camponotus sp. clm05 worker (MCZ-ENT00763312) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view.

Figure 31.

Formica cunicularia worker (MCZ-ENT00759967) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 32.

Formica japonica worker (MCZ-ENT00760066) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 33.

Lasius obscuratus worker (MCZ-ENT00760025, new to Yunnan) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 34.

Lasius himalayanus worker (MCZ-ENT00763360, new to Yunnan) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 35.

Nylanderia bourbonica worker (MCZ-ENT00760019) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 36.

Nylanderia sp. clm01 worker (MCZ-ENT00759776) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 37.

Nylanderia sp. clm02 worker (MCZ-ENT00759968) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 38.

Oecophylla smaragdina worker (MCZ-ENT00763551) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 39.

Paraparatrechina sakurae worker (MCZ-ENT00759953) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 40.

Paraparatrechina sp. clm01 worker (MCZ-ENT00763500) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 41.

Paraparatrechina sp. clm02 worker (MCZ-ENT00763427) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 42.

Polyrhachis armata worker (MCZ-ENT00763282) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 43.

Polyrhachis bihamata worker (MCZ-ENT00763176). A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 44.

Polyrhachis dives worker (MCZ-ENT00760042). A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 45.

Polyrhachis furcata worker (MCZ-ENT00763549) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 46.

Polyrhachis halidayi worker (MCZ-ENT00763195) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 47.

Polyrhachis illaudata worker (MCZ-ENT00760071) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 48.

Polyrhachis laevigata worker (MCZ-ENT00763568) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 49.

Polyrhachis tibialis worker (MCZ-ENT00763284). A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 50.

Prenolepis angularis worker (MCZ-ENT00763328, new to Yunnan). A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 51.

Prenolepis fustinoda worker (MCZ-ENT00763200, new to Yunnan) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 52.

Prenolepis sp. clm01 worker (MCZ-ENT00763220) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view.

Figure 53.

Prenolepis sp. clm02 worker (MCZ-ENT00763467) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view.

Figure 54.

Pseudolasius emeryi worker (MCZ-ENT00762951) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 55.

Pseudolasius silvestrii worker (MCZ-ENT00762838) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 56.

Aphaenogaster feae worker (MCZ-ENT00763554) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map..

Figure 57.

Aphaenogaster sp. clm01 worker (MCZ-ENT00762870) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view.

Figure 58.

Aphaenogaster sp. clm02 worker (MCZ-ENT00763366) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view.

Figure 59.

Aphaenogaster sp. clm03 worker (MCZ-ENT00763603) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view.

Figure 60.

Aphaenogaster sp. clm04 worker (MCZ-ENT00764622) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view.

Figure 61.

Aphaenogaster sp. clm05 worker (MCZ-ENT00762809) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view.

Figure 62.

Cardiocondyla itsukii worker (MCZ-ENT00762820, new to Yunnan) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 63.

Cardiocondyla sp. clm01worker (MCZ-ENT00763607) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view.

Figure 64.

Carebara affinis worker (MCZ-ENT00759841) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 65.

Carebara acutispina worker (MCZ-ENT00759773) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 66.

Carebara altinoda worker (MCZ-ENT00759928) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 67.

Carebara bihornata worker (MCZ-ENT00759796) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 68.

Carebara sp. clm01 worker (MCZ-ENT00759855) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view.

Figure 69.

Cataulacus marginatus worker (MCZ-ENT00760045, new to Yunnan) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 70.

Crematogaster quadriruga worker (MCZ-ENT00759778) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 71.

Crematogaster sp. clm01 worker (MCZ-ENT00762837) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view.

Figure 72.

Crematogaster sp. clm02 worker (MCZ-ENT00762875) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view.

Figure 73.

Dilobocondyla eguchii worker (MCZ-ENT00763656, new to China) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 74.

Gaoligongidris planodorsa worker (MCZ-ENT00759792) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 75.

Gauromyrmex sp. clm01 worker (MCZ-ENT00764656) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 76.

Lordomyrma sp. clm01 worker (MCZ-ENT00763514) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 77.

Monomorium pharaonis worker (MCZ-ENT00760064) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 78.

Monomorium sp. clm01worker (MCZ-ENT00759771) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view.

Figure 79.

Myrmica draco worker (MCZ-ENT00759985) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 80.

Myrmica pleiorhytida worker (MCZ-ENT00759935) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 81.

Myrmica sp. clm01 worker (MCZ-ENT00763256) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view.

Figure 82.

Myrmecina sp. clm01 worker (MCZ-ENT00759959) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view.

Figure 83.

Myrmecina sp. clm02 worker (MCZ-ENT00759803). A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view.

Figure 84.

Myrmecina sp. clm03 worker (MCZ-ENT00763515). A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view.

Figure 85.

Pheidole allani minor worker (MCZ-ENT00759865) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 86.

Pheidole allani major worker (MCZ-ENT00759866) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 87.

Pheidole fervens worker (MCZ-ENT00764619) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 88.

Pheidole fervida minor worker (MCZ-ENT00759918) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 89.

Pheidole fervida major worker (MCZ-ENT00760026) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 90.

Pheidole gatesi worker (MCZ-ENT00763577) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 91.

Pheidole indica worker (MCZ-ENT00762822) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 92.

Pheidole magna minor worker (MCZ-ENT00759762) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 93.

Pheidole magna major worker (MCZ-ENT00759980) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 94.

Pheidole nodifera worker (MCZ-ENT00759837, new to Yunnan) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 95.

Pheidole zoceana minor worker (MCZ-ENT00760015) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 96.

Pheidole zoceana major worker (MCZ-ENT00760016) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 97.

Pristomyrmex brevispinosus worker (MCZ-ENT00763505) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 98.

Pristomyrmex hamatus worker (MCZ-ENT00763502) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 99.

Stenamma wumengense worker (MCZ-ENT00762907) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 100.

Strumigenys assamensis worker (MCZ-ENT00759885) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 101.

Strumigenys strygax worker (MCZ-ENT00763507) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 102.

Strumigenys taphra worker (MCZ-ENT00759758, new to China) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 103.

Strumigenys sp. clm01 worker (MCZ-ENT00763511) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view.

Figure 104.

Strumigenys sp. clm02 worker (MCZ-ENT00759897) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view.

Figure 105.

Strumigenys sp. clm03 worker (MCZ-ENT00759991) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view.

Figure 106.

Temnothorax striatus worker (MCZ-ENT00759763, new to Yunnan) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 107.

Temnothorax sp. clm01 worker (MCZ-ENT00759977) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view.

Figure 108.

Temnothorax sp. clm03 worker (MCZ-ENT00763303) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view.

Figure 109.

Tetramorium tonganum worker (MCZ-ENT00764651) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 110.

Tetramorium sp. clm01 worker (MCZ-ENT00759754) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view.

Figure 111.

Tetramorium sp. clm02 worker (MCZ-ENT00763454) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view.

Figure 112.

Tetramorium sp. clm03 worker (MCZ-ENT00760040) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view.

Figure 113.

Tetramorium sp. clm04 worker (MCZ-ENT00759856) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view.

Figure 114.

Vollenhovia pyrrhoria worker (MCZ-ENT00759854) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 115.

Vollenhovia sp. clm03 worker (MCZ-ENT00764617) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view.

Figure 116.

Brachyponera luteipes worker (MCZ-ENT00759752) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 117.

Ectomomyrmex lobocarenus worker (MCZ-ENT00759748) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 118.

Ectomomyrmex obtusus worker (MCZ-ENT00759859, new to China) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 119.

Hypoponera sp. clm01 worker (MCZ-ENT00759780) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view.

Figure 120.

Hypoponera sp. clm02 worker (MCZ-ENT00759849) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view.

Figure 121.

Hypoponera sp. clm03 worker (MCZ-ENT00759808) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view.

Figure 122.

Leptogenys birmana worker (MCZ-ENT00763178) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 123.

Leptogenys kitteli worker (MCZ-ENT00763321). A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 124.

Odontomachus circulus worker (MCZ-ENT00762856). A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 125.

Odontomachus fulgidus worker (MCZ-ENT00760009, new to Yunnan) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 126.

Platythyrea parallela worker (MCZ-ENT00763657) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 127.

Ponera bawana worker (MCZ-ENT00759807) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 128.

Ponera xantha worker (MCZ-ENT00759845) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 129.

Discothyrea banna worker (MCZ-ENT00759809) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 130.

Discothyrea diana worker (MCZ-ENT00759806) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 131.

Proceratium longigaster worker (MCZ-ENT00759931) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 132.

Proceratium longmenense worker (MCZ-ENT00763325) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 133.

Proceratium zhaoi worker (MCZ-ENT00759857) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 134.

Tetraponera allaborans worker (MCZ-ENT00763523) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 135.

Tetraponera attenuata worker (MCZ-ENT00763165) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Figure 136.

Tetraponera protensa worker (MCZ-ENT00763526) A mesosoma in profile view B mesosoma in dorsal view C head in front view D global distribution map.

Yunnan ant list

AMBLYOPONINAE

Mystrium : 1 species

Mystrium camillae Emery, 1989

Prionopelta : 1 species (undescribed)

Prionopelta sp.

Stigmatomma : 11 species

* Stigmatomma amblyops Karavaiev, 1935

* Stigmatomma awa (Xu, 2012)

Stigmatomma crenatum (Xu, 2001)

* Stigmatomma kangba (Xu, 2012)

* Stigmatomma meilianum (Xu, 2012)

* Stigmatomma mulanae (Xu, 2000)

Stigmatomma octodentatum (Xu, 2006)

Stigmatomma rothneyi (Forel, 1900)

* Stigmatomma scrobiceps (Guénard, 2013)

Stigmatomma silvestrii (Wheeler, 1928)

Stigmatomma trilobum (Xu, 2001)

DOLICHODERINAE

Chronoxenus : 3 species

Chronoxenus myops (Forel, 1895)

Chronoxenus walshi (Forel, 1895)

Chronoxenus wroughtonii (Forel, 1895)

Dolichoderus : 9 species

Dolichoderus affinis Emery, 1889

Dolichoderus feae Emery, 1889

Dolichoderus incisus Xu, 1995

* Dolichoderus laotius Santschi, 1920

Dolichoderus moggridgei Forel, 1886

Dolichoderus sagmanotus Xu, 2001

Dolichoderus squamanodus Xu, 2001

Dolichoderus taprobanae (Smith, 1858)

Dolichoderus thoracicus (Smith, 1860)

Iridomyrmex : 1 species

Iridomyrmex anceps (Roger, 1863)

Liometopum : 1 species

Liometopum sinense Wheeler, 1921

Ochetellus : 1 species

Ochetellus glaber (Mayr, 1862)

Philidris : 1 species

Philidris laevigata (Emery, 1895)

Tapinoma : 4 species

Tapinoma geei Wheeler, 1927

Tapinoma indicum Wheeler, 1895

Tapinoma melanocephalum (Fabricius, 1793)

Tapinoma wroughtonii Forel, 1904

Technomyrmex : 11 species

Technomyrmex albipes (Smith, 1861)

Technomyrmex antennus Zhou, 2001

Technomyrmex bicolor Emery, 1893

Technomyrmex brunneus Forel, 1895

Technomyrmex elatior Forel, 1902

Technomyrmex horni Forel, 1912

* Technomyrmex kraepelini Forel, 1905

Technomyrmex obscurior Wheeler, 1928

Technomyrmex pratensis (Smith, 1860)

* Technomyrmex vitiensis Mann, 1921

* Technomyrmex yamanei Bolton, 2007

DORYLINAE

Aenictus : 19 species

* Aenictus artipus Wilson, 1964

Aenictus binghamii Forel, 1900

* Aenictus brevinodus Jaitrong & Yamane, 2011

Aenictus ceylonicus (Mayr, 1866)

Aenictus dentatus Forel, 1911

Aenictus feae Emery, 1889

Aenictus fergusoni Forel, 1901

Aenictus grandis Bingham, 1903

Aenictus hodgsoni Forel, 1901

Aenictus laeviceps (Smith, 1857)

* Aenictus maneerati Jaitrong & Yamane, 2013

* Aenictus paradentatus Jaitrong & Yamane, 2012

Aenictus piercei Wheeler & Chapman, 1930

Aenictus punensis Forel, 1901

Aenictus shuckardi Forel, 1901

Aenictus thailandianus Terayama & Kubota, 1993

* Aenictus watanasiti Jaitrong & Yamane, 2013

Aenictus westwoodi Forel, 1901

* Aenictus yangi Liu, 2015

Cerapachys : 1 species

Cerapachys sulcinodis Emery, 1889

Chrysapace : 1 species

* Chrysapace costatus (Bharti & Wachkoo, 2013)

Dorylus : 3 species

Dorylus laevigatus (Smith, 1857)

Dorylus orientalis Westwood, 1835

Dorylus vishnui Wheeler, 1913

Lioponera : 1 species

Lioponera longitarsus (Mayr, 1879)

Ooceraea : 1 species

Ooceraea biroi (Forel, 1907)

Parasyscia : 1 species

Parasyscia fossulata (Forel, 1895)

Simopone : 1 species

* Simopone yunnanensis Chen, 2015

Syscia : 1 species

Syscia typhla Roger, 1861

Yunodorylus : 1 species

Yunodorylus sexspinus Xu, 2000

ECTATOMMINAE

Gnamptogenys : 6 species

Gnamptogenys bicolor (Emery, 1889)

Gnamptogenys coccina Zhou, 2001

* Gnamptogenys coxalis (Roger, 1860)

* Gnamptogenys quadrutinodules Chen, 2017

Gnamptogenys sichuanensis Lattke, 2004

* Gnamptogenys sinensis Wu & Xiao, 1987

* Gnamptogenys treta Lattke, 2004

FORMICINAE

Acropyga : 2 species

Acropyga nipponensis Terayama, 1985

Acropyga yaeyamensis Terayama & Hashimoto, 1996

Anoplolepis : 1 species

Anoplolepis gracilipes (Smith, 1857)

Camponotus : 28 species

Camponotus albosparsus Bingham, 1903

Camponotus anningensis Wu & Wang, 1989

Camponotus auratiacus Zhou, 2001

Camponotus barbatus taylori Forel, 1892

* Camponotus bellus leucodiscus Wheeler, 1919

* Camponotus binghamii Forel, 1894

Camponotus chongqingensis Wu & Wang, 1989

Camponotus compressus (Fabricius, 1787)

Camponotus confucii Forel, 1894

Camponotus cornis Wang & Wu, 1994

* Camponotus crassisquamis Forel, 1902

Camponotus dolendus Forel, 1892

Camponotus exiguoguttatus Forel, 1886

* Camponotus fuscivillosus Xiao & Wang, 1989

Camponotus holosericeus Emery, 1889

* Camponotus invidus Forel, 1892

* Camponotus itoi Forel, 1912

Camponotus japonicus Mayr, 1866

Camponotus jianghuaensis Xiao & Wang, 1989

Camponotus lasiselene Wang & Wu, 1994

Camponotus minus Wang & Wu, 1994

Camponotus mitis (Smith, 1858)

Camponotus nicobarensis Mayr, 1865

Camponotus parius Emery, 1889

Camponotus pseudoirritans Wu & Wang, 1989

Camponotus pseudolendus Wu & Wang, 1989

* Camponotus radiatus Forel, 1892

Camponotus siemsseni Forel, 1901

Camponotus singularis (Smith, 1858)

Camponotus tonkinus Santschi, 1925

Camponotus vitiosus (Smith, 1874)

Colobopsis : 7 species

Colobopsis badia (Smith, 1857)

* Colobopsis ceylonica (Emery, 1925)

Colobopsis cotesii (Forel, 1893)

Colobopsis leonardi (Emery, 1889)

Colobopsis politae (Wu & Wang, 1994)

Colobopsis rothneyi (Forel, 1893)

Colobopsis vitrea (Smithi, 1860)

Echinopla : 2 species

* Echinopla cherapunjiensis Bharti & Gul, 2012

* Echinopla striata Smith, 1857

Formica : 5 species

Formica cunicularia Latreille, 1798

* Formica gagatoides Ruzsky, 1904

Formica glabridorsis Santschi, 1925

* Formica lemani Bondroit, 1917

Formica japonica Motschoulsky, 1866

Formica sanguinea Latreille, 1798

Formica sinensis Wheeler, 1913

Gesomyrmex : 1 species

* Gesomyrmex kalshoveni Wheeler, 1929

Lasius : 6 species

Lasius draco Collingwood, 1982

Lasius flavus (Fabricius, 1782)

* Lasius himalayanus Bingham, 1903

Lasius nipponensis Forel, 1912

* Lasius obscuratus Stitz, 1930

Lasius sichuense Seifert, 2020

Lepisiota : 8 species

Lepisiota acuta Xu, 1994

Lepisiota capensis (Mayr, 1862)

Lepisiota opaca (Forel, 1892)

* Lepisiota pulchella (Forel, 1892)

Lepisiota reticulata Xu, 1994

Lepisiota rothneyi (Forel, 1894)

Lepisiota rothneyi wroughtonii (Forel, 1902)

Lepisiota xichangensis (Wu & Wang, 1995)

Myrmoteras : 2 species

Myrmoteras binghamii Forel, 1893

Myrmoteras cuneonodus Xu, 1998

Nylanderia : 10 species

Nylanderia birmana (Forel, 1902)

Nylanderia bourbonica (Forel, 1886)

* Nylanderia emmae (Forel, 1894)

* Nylanderia flaviabdominis (Wang, 1997)

Nylanderia flavipes (Smith, 1874)

Nylanderia indica (Forel, 1894)

Nylanderia sharpii (Forel, 1899)

Nylanderia taylori (Forel, 1894)

Nylanderia vividula (Nylander, 1846) (Exotic)

Nylanderia yerburyi (Forel, 1894)

Oecophylla : 1 species

Oecophylla smaragdina (Fabricius, 1775)

Paraparatrechina : 2 species

* Paraparatrechina sakurae (Ito, 1914)

Paraparatrechina sauteri (Forel, 1913)

Paratrechina : 1 species

Paratrechina longicornis (Latreille, 1802) (Exotic)

Plagiolepis : 4 species

Plagiolepis alluaudi Emery, 1894 (Exotic)

Plagiolepis demangei Santschi, 1920

Plagiolepis exigua Forel, 1894

* Plagiolepis jerdonii Forel, 1894

Polyrhachis : 32 species

Polyrhachis armata (Le Guillou, 1842)

Polyrhachis bakana Xu, 1998

Polyrhachis bicolor Smith, 1858

Polyrhachis bihamata (Drury, 1773)

Polyrhachis brevicorpa Xu, 2002

Polyrhachis burmanensis Donisthorpe, 1938

Polyrhachis cornihumera Xu, 2002

Polyrhachis cornuhumera Zhou & Huang, 2002

Polyrhachis cyphonota Xu, 1998

Polyrhachis dentihumera Xu, 2002

Polyrhachis dives Smith, 1857

* Polyrhachis exercita (Walker, 1859)

Polyrhachis furcata Smith, 1858

Polyrhachis gibba Emery, 1901

Polyrhachis halidayi Emery, 1889

* Polyrhachis hippomanes Emery, 1861

Polyrhachis hippomanes ceylonensis Emery, 1893

Polyrhachis illaudata Walker, 1859

Polyrhachis jianghuaensis Wang & Wu, 1991

Polyrhachis laevigata Smith, 1857

Polyrhachis moesta Emery, 1887

Polyrhachis orbihumera Xu, 2002

Polyrhachis paracamponota Wang & Wu, 1991

Polyrhachis proxima Roger, 1863

Polyrhachis pubescens Mayr, 1879

Polyrhachis punctillata Roger, 1863

Polyrhachis rastellata (Latreille, 1802)

Polyrhachis rotoccipita Xu, 2002

Polyrhachis rufipes Smith, 1858

Polyrhachis thompsoni Bingham, 1903

Polyrhachis thrinax Roger, 1863

Polyrhachis tibialis Smith, 1858

Prenolepis : 7 species

Prenolepis angularis Zhou, 2001

* Prenolepis fustinoda Williams & LaPolla, 2016

* Prenolepis mediops Williams & LaPolla, 2016

Prenolepis melanogaster Emery, 1893

Prenolepis naoroji Forel, 1902

* Prenolepis shanialena Williams & LaPolla, 2016

* Prenolepis striata Chen & Zhou, 2018

Pseudolasius : 6 species

Pseudolasius bidenticlypeus Xu, 1997

Pseudolasius cibdelus Wu & Wang, 1992

Pseudolasius emeryi Forel, 1911

Pseudolasius familiaris (Smith, 1860)

Pseudolasius risii Forel, 1894

Pseudolasius silvestrii Wheeler, 1927

LEPTANILLINAE

Leptanilla : 3 species

Leptanilla hunanensis Tang, Li & Chen, 1992

Leptanilla kunmingensis Xu & Zhang, 2002

Leptanilla yunnanensis Xu, 2002

Protanilla : 4 species

Protanilla bicolor Xu, 2002

Protanilla concolor Xu, 2002

* Protanilla furcomandibula Xu, 2002

Protanilla gengma Xu, 2012

MYRMICINAE

Acanthomyrmex : 2 species

Acanthomyrmex glabfemoralis Zhou & Zheng, 1997

Acanthomyrmex luciolae Emery, 1893

Aphaenogaster : 9 species

Aphaenogaster beccarii Emery, 1887

Aphaenogaster exasperata (Smith, 1921)

Aphaenogaster famelica (Smith, 1874)

Aphaenogaster feae Emery, 1889

* Aphaenogaster geei Wheeler, 1921

Aphaenogaster japonica Forel, 1911

Aphaenogaster lepida Wheeler, 1930

Aphaenogaster rothneyi (Forel, 1902)

Aphaenogaster schurri (Forel, 1902)

Aphaenogaster smythiesii (Forel, 1902)

Cardiocondyla : 3 species

* Cardiocondyla itsukii Seifert, Okita & Heinze, 2017 (Exotic)

Cardiocondyla obscurior Wheeler, 1929

Cardiocondyla wroughtonii (Forel, 1890)

Carebara : 18 species

Carebara acutispina (Xu, 2003)

Carebara affinis (Jerdon, 1951)

Carebara altinoda (Xu, 2003)

Carebara asina (Forel, 1902)

Carebara bengalensis (Forel, 1902)

Carebara bihornata (Xu, 2003)

Carebara curvispina (Xu, 2003)

* Carebara diversa (Jerdon, 1851)

* Carebara jiangxiensis Wu & Wang, 1995

Carebara lignata Westwood, 1840

* Carebara melasolena (Zhou & Zheng, 1997)

Carebara obtusidenta (Xu, 2003)

Carebara polyphemus (Wheeler, 1928)

Carebara rectidorsa (Xu, 2003)

Carebara reticapita (Xu, 2003)

Carebara striata (Forel, 2003)

Carebara taiponica (Wheeler, 1928)

Carebara trechideros (Zhou & Zheng, 1997)

Carebara wheeleri (Ettershank, 1966)

Cataulacus : 4 species

Cataulacus granulatus (Latreille,1802)

* Cataulacus marginatus Bolton, 1974

Cataulacus simoni Emery, 1893

Cataulacus taprobanae Smith, 1853

Crematogaster : 25 species

Crematogaster anthracina Smith, 1857

* Crematogaster artifex Mayr, 1879

Crematogaster binghamii Forel, 1904

Crematogaster biroi Mayr, 1897

* Crematogaster contemta Mayr, 1879

Crematogaster dalyi Forel, 1902

Crematogaster dohrni Mayr, 1879

Crematogaster ebenina Forel, 1902

Crematogaster ferrarii Emery, 1888

Crematogaster hodgsoni Forel, 1902

* Crematogaster inflata Smith, 1857

Crematogaster macaoensis Wu & Wang, 1995

Crematogaster matsumurai Forel, 1901

Crematogaster nawai Ito, 1914

Crematogaster osakensis Forel, 1900

Crematogaster politula Forel, 1902

* Crematogaster quadriruga Forel, 1911

Crematogaster rogenhoferi Mayr, 1879

Crematogaster rothneyi Mayr, 1879

Crematogaster subnuda Mayr, 1879

Crematogaster travancorensis Forel, 1902

Crematogaster treubi Emery, 1896

Crematogaster walshi Forel, 1902

Crematogaster wroughtonii Forel, 1902

Crematogaster zoceensis Santschi, 1925

Dilobocondyla : 3 species

* Dilobocondyla eguchii Bharti & Kumar, 2013

Dilobocondyla fouqueti Santschi, 1910

* Dilobocondyla gasteroreticulata Bharti & Kumar, 2013

Erromyrma : 1 species

Erromyrma latinodis (Mayr, 1872)

Gaoligongidris : 1 species

Gaoligongidris planodorsa Xu, 2012

Gauromyrmex: 1 species

Gauromyrmex acanthinus (Karavaiev, 1935)

Kartidris : 3 species

Kartidris ashima Xu & Zheng, 1995

Kartidris nyos Bolton, 1991

Kartidris sparsipila Xu, 1999

Lasiomyrma : 1 species (undescribed)

Lasiomyrma sp.

Lophomyrmex : 3 species

Lophomyrmex bedoti Emery, 1893

Lophomyrmex birmanus Emery, 1893

Lophomyrmex quadrispinosus (Jerdon, 1851)

Lordomyrma : 1 species (undescribed)

Lordomyrma sp.

Meranoplus : 2 speices

Meranoplus bicolor (Guérin-Méneville, 1844)

Meranoplus laeviventris Emery, 1889

Messor : 1 species

* Messor aciculatus (Smith, 1874)

Monomorium : 5 species

Monomorium chinense Santschi, 1925

Monomorium floricola (Jerdon, 1851)

* Monomorium hainanense Wu & Wang, 1995

Monomorium orientale Mayr, 1879

Monomorium pharaonis (Linnaeus, 1758)

Myrmecina : 5 species

* Myrmecina asiatica Okido, Ogata & Hosoishsi, 2020

* Myrmecina asthena Okido, Ogata & Hosoishsi, 2020

Myrmecina curvispina Zhou, Huang & Ma, 2008

Myrmecina guangxiensis Zhou, 2001

* Myrmecina sinensis Wheeler, 1921

Myrmecina striata Emery, 1889

Myrmecina taiwana Terayama, 1995

Myrmica : 11 species

Myrmica curiosa Radchenko, Zhou & Elmes, 2008

Myrmica draco Radchenko, Zhou & Elmes, 2008

* Myrmica excelsa Kupyanskaya, 1990

* Myrmica heterorhytida Radchenko & Elmes, 2008

Myrmica margaritae Emery, 1889

Myrmica pleiorhytida Radchenko & Elmes, 2009

Myrmica polyglypta Radchenko & Rigato, 2008

Myrmica ritae Emery, 1889

Myrmica serica Wheeler, 1928

Myrmica sinensis Radchenko, Zhou & Elmes, 2008

Myrmica titanica Mayr, 2001

Myrmica yunnanensis Radchenko & Elmes, 2008

Myrmicaria : 1 species

Myrmicaria brunnea Saunders, 1842

Perissomyrmex : 2 species

Perissomyrmex bidentatus Zhou & Huang, 2006

Perissomyrmex fissus Xu & Wang, 2004

Pheidole : 42 species

Pheidole allani Bingham, 1903

Pheidole binghamii Forel, 1902

Pheidole capellinii Emery, 1902

Pheidole constanciae Forel, 1902

Pheidole elongicephala Eguchi, 2008

Pheidole exasperata (Mayr, 1866)

Pheidole fervens Smith, 1858

Pheidole fervida Smith, 1874

* Pheidole fortis Eguchi, 2006

Pheidole gatesi (Wheeler, 1927)

* Pheidole hongkongensis Wheeler, 1928

Pheidole indica Mayr, 1879

* Pheidole indosinensis Wheeler, 1928

Pheidole jucunda Forel, 1885

* Pheidole laevicolor Eguchi, 2006

* Pheidole magna Eguchi, 2006

Pheidole multidens Forel, 1902

Pheidole nietneri Emery, 1901

* Pheidole nodifera Smith, 1858

Pheidole nodus Smith, 1874

* Pheidole ochracea Eguchi, 2008

* Pheidole parva Mayr, 1865

Pheidole pieli Santschi, 1925

* Pheidole plagiaria Smith, 1860

* Pheidole planifrons Santschi, 1920

* Pheidole rabo Forel, 1913

Pheidole roberti Forel, 1902

* Pheidole rugithorax Eguchi, 2008

Pheidole sagei Forel, 1902

* Pheidole singaporensis Özdikmen, 2010

Pheidole sinica (Wu & Wang, 1992)

* Pheidole smythiesii Forel, 1902

Pheidole spathifera Forel, 1902

Pheidole sulcaticeps Roger, 1863

* Pheidole tandjongensis Forel, 1913

* Pheidole tjibodana Forel, 1905

* Pheidole tumida Eguchi, 2008

* Pheidole vieti Eguchi, 2008

* Pheidole vulgaris Eguchi, 2006

Pheidole watsoni Forel, 1902

Pheidole yeensis Forel, 1902

* Pheidole zoceana Santschi, 1925

Pristomyrmex : 4 species

Pristomyrmex brevispinosus Emery, 1887

Pristomyrmex hamatus Xu & Zhang, 2002

Pristomyrmex punctatus (Smith, 1860)

Pristomyrmex sulcatus Emery, 1895

Recurvidris : 3 species

* Recurvidris kemneri (Wheeler, 1954)

Recurvidris nuwa Xu & Zheng, 1995

Recurvidris recurvispinosa (Forel, 1890)

Rhopalomastix : 2 species

* Rhopalomastix rothneyi Forel, 1900

Rhopalomastix umbracapita Xu, 1999

Rotastruma : 1 species

* Rotastruma stenoceps Bolton, 1991

Solenopsis : 3 species

Solenopsis indagatrix Wheeler, 1928

Solenopsis invicta Buren, 1972 (Exotic)

Solenopsis jacoti Wheeler, 1923

Stenamma : 4 species

Stenamma ailaoense Liu & Xiu, 2011

Stenamma gurkhale DuBois, 1998

* Stenamma jeriorum DuBois, 1998

Stenamma wumengense Liu & Xiu, 2011

Strumigenys : 24 species

Strumigenys ailaoshana Xu & Zhou, 2004

* Strumigenys assamensis De Andrade, 1994

Strumigenys dayui (Xu, 2000)

* Strumigenys doriae Emery, 1887

* Strumigenys dyschima (Bolton, 2000)

Strumigenys exilirhina Bolton, 2000

Strumigenys feae Emery, 1895

* Strumigenys kichijo (Terayama, 1996)

* Strumigenys leptothrix Wheeler, 1929

Strumigenys lewisi Cameron, 1886

* Strumigenys lyroessa (Roger, 1862)

* Strumigenys membranifera Emery, 1869 (Exotic)

* Strumigenys mitis (Brown, 2000)

Strumigenys mutica (Brown, 1949)

Strumigenys nanzanensis Lin & Wu, 1996

* Strumigenys nepalensis De Andrade, 1994

Strumigenys nongba (Xu & Zhou, 2004)

* Strumigenys paraposta Bolton, 2000

* Strumigenys rallarhina Bolton, 2000

* Strumigenys sauteri (Forel, 1912)

Strumigenys strygax Bolton, 2000

* Strumigenys sydorata Bolton, 2000

* Strumigenys taphra (Bolton, 2000)

* Strumigenys tritomea Bolton, 2000

Strumigenys yangi (Xu & Zhou, 2004)

Temnothorax : 7 species

Temnothorax angulohumerus Zhou, 2010

Temnothorax congruus (Smith, 1874)

Temnothorax hengshanensis (Huang, 2004)

Temnothorax nassonovi (Ruzsky, 1895)

Temnothorax orchidus Zhou, 2010

Temnothorax striatus Zhou, 2010

Temnothorax wui (Wheeler, 1929)

Tetramorium : 29 species

Tetramorium aptum Bolton, 1977

Tetramorium bicarinatum (Nylander, 1846)

Tetramorium cardiocarenum Xu & Zheng, 1994

Tetramorium ciliatum Bolton, 1977

Tetramorium crepum Wang & Wu, 1988

Tetramorium cuneinode Bolton, 1977

Tetramorium cyclolobium Xu & Zheng, 1994

* Tetramorium difficile Bolton, 1977

* Tetramorium flavipes Emery, 1893

Tetramorium indosinense Wheeler, 1927

Tetramorium insolens (Smith, 1861)

Tetramorium kheperra (Bolton, 1976)

Tetramorium kraepelini Forel, 1905

Tetramorium lanuginosum Mayr, 1870

Tetramorium laparum Bolton, 1977

Tetramorium nipponense Wheeler, 1928

Tetramorium nursei Bingham, 1903

Tetramorium obtusidens Viehmeyer, 1916

Tetramorium pacificum Mayr, 1870

* Tetramorium parvispinum (Emery, 1893)

* Tetramorium polymorphum Yamane & Jaitrong, 2011

Tetramorium repletum Wang & Xiao, 1988

Tetramorium simillimum (Smith, 1851) (Exotic)

Tetramorium smithi Mayr, 1879

* Tetramorium tonganum Mayr, 1870

Tetramorium walshi (Forel, 1890)

* Tetramorium wroughtonii (Forel, 1902)

Tetramorium yerburyi Forel, 1902

Tetramorium yulongense Xu & Zheng, 1994

Trichomyrmex : 2 species

Trichomyrmex destructor (Jerdon, 1851) (Exotic)

Trichomyrmex mayri (Forel, 1902) (Exotic)

Vollenhovia : 2 species

* Vollenhovia lucimandibula Wang, 2005

Vollenhovia pyrrhoria Wu & Xiao, 1989

Vombisidris : 1 species

* Vombisidris tibeta Xu & Yu, 2012

PONERINAE

Anochetus : 6 species

Anochetus graeffei Mayr, 1870

* Anochetus madaraszi Mayr, 1897

Anochetus mixtus Radchenko, 1993

* Anochetus myops Emery, 1893

Anochetus risii Forel, 1900

Anochetus subcoecus Forel, 1912

Brachyponera : 2 species

Brachyponera brevidorsa Xu, 1994

* Brachyponera chinensis (Emery, 1895)

Brachyponera luteipes (Mayr, 1862)

Buniapone : 1 species

Buniapone amblyops (Emery, 1887)

Centromyrmex : 1 species

Centromyrmex feae (Emery, 1889)

Cryptopone : 5 species

Cryptopone gigas Wu & Wang, 1995

Cryptopone recticlypea Xu, 1998

* Cryptopone sauteri (Wheeler, 1906)

Cryptopone taivanae (Forel, 1930)

Cryptopone testacea Emery, 1893

Diacamma : 1 species

* Diacamma rugosum (Le Guillou, 1842)

Ectomomyrmex : 8 species

Ectomomyrmex annamitus (André, 1892)

Ectomomyrmex astutus (Smith, 1858)

Ectomomyrmex javanus Mayr, 1867

Ectomomyrmex leeuwenhoeki (Forel, 1886)

Ectomomyrmex lobocarenus (Xu, 1995)

* Ectomomyrmex obtusus Emery, 1900

Ectomomyrmex sauteri (Forel, 1912)

Ectomomyrmex zhengi (Xu, 1995)

Emeryopone : 1 species

Emeryopone melaina Xu, 1998

Euponera : 1 species

Euponera pilosior (Wheeler, 1928)

Harpegnathos : 1 species

Harpegnathos venator (Smith, 1858)

Hypoponera : 7 species

Hypoponera ceylonensis (Mayr, 1897)

Hypoponera confinis (Roger, 1860)

* Hypoponera ergatandria (Forel, 1893) (Exotic)

Hypoponera nippona (Santschi, 1937)

Hypoponera punctatissima (Roger, 1859) (Exotic)

Hypoponera sauteri Onoyama, 1989

Hypoponera truncata (Smith, 1860)

Leptogenys : 17 species

Leptogenys binghamii Forel, 1900

Leptogenys birmana Forel, 1900

Leptogenys chinensis (Mayr, 1870)

Leptogenys crassicornis Emery, 1895

* Leptogenys davydovi Karavaiev, 1935

Leptogenys diminuta (Smith, 1857)

* Leptogenys kitteli (Mayr, 1870)

* Leptogenys kraepelini Forel, 1905

Leptogenys laozii Xu, 2000

Leptogenys lucidula Emery, 1895

Leptogenys mengzii Xu, 2000

Leptogenys pangui Xu, 2000

* Leptogenys peuqueti (André, 1887)

* Leptogenys processionalis (Jerdon, 1851)

* Leptogenys rufida Zhou, 2012

* Leptogenys sunzii Xu, 2015

Leptogenys zhuangzii Xu, 2000

Mesoponera : 1 species

Mesoponera melanaria (Emery, 1893)

Myopias : 3 species

Myopias conicara Xu, 1998

* Myopias daia Xu, 2014

* Myopias hania Xu, 2012

Odontomachus : 6 species

Odontomachus circulus Wang, 1993

* Odontomachus fulgidus Wang, 1993

Odontomachus granatus Wang, 1993

Odontomachus monticola Emery, 1892

Odontomachus rixosus Smith, 1857

Odontomachus tensus Wang, 1993

Odontoponera : 1 species

* Odontoponera denticulata (Smith, 1858)

Platythyrea : 2 species

Platythyrea clypeata Forel, 1911

* Platythyrea parallela (Smith, 1859)

Ponera : 14 species

Ponera alisana Terayama, 1986

Ponera baka Xu, 2001

Ponera bawana Xu, 2001

* Ponera chiponensis Terayama, 1986

Ponera diodonta Xu, 2001

Ponera longlina Xu, 2001

Ponera menglana Xu, 2001

Ponera nangongshana Xu, 2001

* Ponera paedericera Zhou, 2001

Ponera pentodontos Xu, 2001

Ponera pianmana Xu, 2001

Ponera scabra Wheeler, 1928

Ponera sinensis Wheeler,1928

Ponera xantha Xu, 2001

Pseudoneoponera : 2 species

Pseudoneoponera bispinosa (Smith, 1858)

Pseudoneoponera rufipes (Jerdon, 1851)

PROCERATIINAE

Discothyrea : 3 species

* Discothyrea banna Xu, 2014

* Discothyrea diana Xu, 2014

Discothyrea sauteri Forel, 1912

Probolomyrmex : 1 species

Probolomyrmex longiscapus Xu & Zeng, 2000

Proceratium : 4 species

Proceratium longigaster Karavaiev, 1935

Proceratium longmenense Xu, 2006

* Proceratium shohei Staab, 2018

Proceratium zhaoi Xu, 2000

PSEUDOMYRMECINAE

Tetraponera : 12 species

Tetraponera allaborans (Walker, 1859)

Tetraponera amargina Xu & Chai, 2004

Tetraponera attenuata Smith, 1877

Tetraponera binghami (Forel, 1902)

Tetraponera concava Xu & Chai, 2004

Tetraponera convexa Xu & Chai, 2004

Tetraponera furcata Xu & Chai, 2004

Tetraponera microcarpa Wu & Wang, 1990

Tetraponera nitida (Smith, 1860)

Tetraponera notabilis Ward, 2001

Tetraponera protensa Xu & Chai, 2004

Tetraponera rufonigra (Jerdon, 1851)

Discussion

Ants in the Hengduan Mountain region

Field inventories and data synthesis efforts are essential for our understanding of ant diversity in ‘hotspots’ that harbor most of Earth’s biodiversity. Our study represents new survey data from an understudied region. We produce the first ant species checklist from China’s Hengduan Mountains (130 species).

A majority of the ant species were only collected below 1500 m, consistent with the strong effect of elevation on ant diversity observed elsewhere (Suppl. material 1, Fig. S1). This also suggests that future sampling in low elevation areas may increase species detection. For example, the number of Strumigenys species recovered in this survey is relatively low compared to the overall richness of this genus. This could be because we have relatively few collection events at low elevations where many of these species are known to occur. Indeed, all six Strumigenys species were collected below 1000 m from only three independent Winkler sampling sites.

Many of the new records in our collection such as Aenictus brevinodus, Camponotus bellus leucodiscus, Cataulacus marginatus, Crematogaster quadriruga, Dilobocondyla eguchii, Gnamptogenys quadrutinodules, and Strumigenys taphra represent the northern-most records of their known distributional ranges. Species records such as Aenictus brevinodus, Camponotus bellus leucodiscus, Camponotus keihitoi, Cataulacus marginatus, Gnamptogenys quadrutinodules, and Strumigenys taphra show a disjunction from the rest of their known distributions. It is unclear whether those records represent true biogeographic disjunctions, or sampling / taxonomic artifacts. Another potential reason could be that they were collected in the past, but have not been reported due to the lack of taxonomic infrastructure and species check lists from this region (Guénard et al. 2017). Additional inventories of ant diversity and taxonomic treatments are needed to answer these questions.

Despite the comparatively small area of China’s Hengduan Mountains that we explored for this inventory of myrmecofauna, we were able to collect 130 species, which accounts for more than 24 % of the total number of ant species (N = 550) for Yunnan province. Among them, more than 10% of the ant species that were collected in this survey represent new records for Yunnan province. Moreover, there are still more than 41 morphospecies (32% of the total collected) that we believe are undescribed and new to science. To date, three Myrmecina species (Figs 82–84) and one Gauromyrmex species (Fig. 75) are undergoing taxonomic revision, and species descriptions are being prepared.

Our sampling of the full ant diversity of the Hengduan mountain region is still relatively limited. For example, we only had one sampling site per elevation, which is insufficient to cover the complex topology of the Hengduan Mountains. We also only used leaf litter extraction and hand collection, which is unlikely to recover complete ant assemblages. The incorporation of additional sampling techniques into our methodology, such as pitfall trapping, soil baiting, twig sampling, light trapping and canopy fogging, will cover more strata and lifestyles, and thus significantly increase our rate of species discovery. Overall, our results highlight how little was previously known about the ant fauna in this region and emphasize the need for further collecting in order to better understand the hidden ant biodiversity in China’s Hengduan Mountains, and Yunnan Province overall.

Ants in Yunnan

If the total species richness of ants in Yunnan, with 550 species, is still an underestimate of the full species numbers, the exceptional diversity of genera encountered in this region needs to be highlighted. With 99 genera, Yunnan generic diversity is only matched globally by a few regions in South East Asia, and Queensland, Australia. A major difference with other Asian regions lies in the composition of the genera retrieved and their origin. For instance, genera found in Borneo, Sumatra, Java, Vietnam, Thailand, Peninsular Malaysia are almost exclusively derived from tropical, Oriental origins. In contrast, the geographic location and topography of Yunnan province has promoted an intermixing of taxa from several biogeographic regions: the Oriental realm from the south, the Palearctic realm from the northwest, and the Sino-Japanese realm from the northeast. As a result, the composition of the Yunnan ant fauna includes both tropical, subtropical, and temperate elements. Such intermixed communities are evident even at a small scale. For instance, during previous fieldwork conducted in the Gaoligongshan Mountains in 2015 by two of the authors (BG and CL), for which specimens were unfortunately lost, the coexistence of tropical (Dorylus, Ectomomyrmex), subtropical (Temnothorax) and temperate genera (Formica, Lasius) was observed on a hillside at an elevation of about 1900 m on an ~ 250 m² patch of grassland. Interestingly, while this area exhibited a transition where fauna from distinctly different origins coexisted along a thin band of altitude, at lower elevations, tropical genera were dominant and at higher elevations, temperate genera became dominant. Overall, this generated an unexpectedly diverse faunal composition, with such mixed communities contemplated by Wheeler (1915) to explain the generic composition and diversity of fossil ants observed in Baltic amber. Possibly, the ant composition of genera now retrieved within Yunnan might represent the remains of a once more widespread assemblage found within Asia and Europe during the Miocene (Guénard et al. 2015). This highlights the specific nature of the Yunnan ant fauna and its importance in studying ant biogeography within Asia. It also serves as an excellent example of the formation and stability of ant community assemblages over time. Other neighboring regions such as Myanmar, Bhutan, Nepal or northeast India are likely to exhibit similar features, but to this point, the myrmecological exploration of these regions has been largely fragmentary (Guénard et al. 2010, 2012).

The diversity of Yunnan ants is also remarkable for particular ant genera for which their global peak of diversity is encountered in the region. While it is important to note that the global diversity of specific genera as well as their overall taxonomic descriptions remain incomplete, seven genera present their highest currently known global diversity in Yunnan (Cryptopone: 5 species, Ectomomyrmex: 8 species, Kartidris: 3 species, Perissomyrmex: 2 species, Ponera: 14 species, Prenolepis: 7 species, Stigmatomma: 11 species), while six others are remarkable by the level of global diversity there, among the highest observed globally (Aenictus: 19 species, Carebara: 19 species, Dilobocondyla: 3 species, Myrmecina: 7 species, Proceratium: 4 species, Recurvidris: 3 species).

In conclusion, the important topographic variation, with mountain ranges aligned along a north-south axis combined with the presence of multiple climatic zones, including tropical rainforest in the lowland areas of the southern part of Yunnan create a diversity of microhabitats for supporting a diverse ant fauna. Moreover, the geographic position of Yunnan at the confluence of three biogeographic realms may promote ant diversity in the region. The collection of these 16 new ant records for Yunnan together with our previous discovery of 40 new ant records for Yunnan (Liu et al. 2015a) suggest that the true ant diversity in Yunnan is significantly higher. Moreover, the species diversity of some ant genera in nearby regions (based on data from GABI) also suggests that some ant genera sampled will ultimately be much more diverse in Yunnan (Guénard et al. 2017). For example, Hong Kong has recorded a similar diversity of Strumigenys species while having an area nearly 350 times smaller and a much less diverse topography compare to Yunnan (Tang et al. 2019), perhaps because leaf litter extraction has not been widely used for sampling ants in Yunnan. Thus, our survey to date indicates that further intensive sampling focused on different ecological strata (arboreal, leaf litter, subterranean) and combining various methods of extraction in both tropical and mountain habitats should yield many additional records and new species discovery in this region.

Acknowledgments

We thank Crystal Maier, David Lubertazzi, Stefan Cover, Patrick McCormack, Charles Whittemore Farnum, and Rachel Hawkins for assisting in different aspects of the research. We thank Brian Fisher, Himender Bharti, and Steve Shattuck for comments on the manuscript. This work was supported by E. O. Wilson Biodiversity Postdoctoral fellowship from the MCZ, Harvard University. GF, FHG, and EPE were supported by subsidy funding to the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University. QL was supported by funding from the Project of Key Laboratory of Insect Resources Conservation and Utilization in Western Yunnan, Baoshan University (YJF [2019] No.57). CL and YQP were also supported by funding from the Biodiversity Survey and Assessment Project of the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, China (2019HJ2096001006) and CAS Key Laboratory of Tropical Forest Ecology, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China (19CAS-TFE-2). EPE was funded by a JSPS Kakehnhi grant (17K15180) and a grant from the Japan Ministry of the Environment (Environment Research and Technology Development Fund no. 4-1904).

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Supplementary material

Supplementary material 1

Figure S1. Ant species richness pattern along an elevational gradient in the Hengduan Mountains

Cong Liu, Georg Fischer, Francisco Hita Garcia, Seiki Yamane, Qing Liu, Yan Qiong Peng, Evan P. Economo, Benoit Guénard, Naomi E. Pierce

Data type: Image

This dataset is made available under the Open Database License (http://opendatacommons.org/licenses/odbl/1.0/). The Open Database License (ODbL) is a license agreement intended to allow users to freely share, modify, and use this Dataset while maintaining this same freedom for others, provided that the original source and author(s) are credited.

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