In the original description of Bannapone, Xu (2000) used several morphological characteristics for establishing the
taxonomic status of the genus. Here, we review and modify those characteristics based on the newly described
worker caste and species.
The evolutionary placement of Bannapone within the subfamily Amblyoponinae will remain uncertain until
molecular phylogenetic studies are available. However, Bannapone has morphological similarities with the
pantropical genus Prionopelta and the Afrotopical genus Concoctio. Concoctio was described by Brown (1974)
and differentiated by its reduced number of teeth on the mandibles. Mandibles of Prionopelta and Bannapone
possess 3 teeth, while Concoctio possess only 2 teeth, contrasting with the mandibles of other Amblyoponinae
genera that possess more than 3 teeth. Molecular phylogenies have supported a clade composed of the genera
Concoctio and Prionopelta (Saux et al. 2004, Moreau et al. 2006, Brady et al. 2006). At this point, there are no
molecular data for Bannapone, but based on morphological affinities with Prionopelta, it seems likely that
Bannapone might belong to the Concoctio + Prionopelta clade.