The subfamily Amblyoponinae includes 116 species spread over 13 genera. Most of the Amblyoponine genera
exhibit a pan-tropical distribution (Guénard et al. 2011), although a few species are also known to be adapted to
cooler habitats of temperate regions. A few fossils have also been described, found in deposits located in more
northern regions of Europe and Asia and now outside the distribution range of the subfamily (Figure 1). Many
species of this subfamily are known to exhibit a subterranean life and are occasionally Collected through leaf litter
extraction (Brown 1949, 1960). Amblyoponine colonies are typically small, consisting of only a dozen to a few
hundred workers (Gotwald & Levieux 1972, Traniello 1982, Hölldobler & Wilson 1990, Ito 1991, Yoshimura &
Fisher 2012). The typical mandibular shape of several genera encountered in this subfamily is an adaptation for
their specialized predatory diet of centipedes and insect larvae found in rotten wood or leaf litter (Brown 1960,
Gotwald & Levieux 1972, Masuko 1993, Ito 1993). Another unusual feeding characteristic of some
Amblyoponinae species is the feeding from larval hemolymph though non-destructive parental cannibalism
(Masuko 1986, Ito 2010). This behavior, considered as “primitive” in ants and linked to some of the
morphologically primitive characters (e.g. broad attachment of the petiole to the gaster, see Ward 1994) of this
subfamily have supported the hypothesis that Amblyoponinae is a basal lineage in ants. Recent molecular
phylogenetic work has confirmed this conclusion (Moreau & Bell 2013).
The subfamily Amblyoponinae includes 116 species spread over 13 genera. Most of the Amblyoponine generaexhibit a pan-tropical distribution (Guénard et al. 2011), although a few species are also known to be adapted tocooler habitats of temperate regions. A few fossils have also been described, found in deposits located in morenorthern regions of Europe and Asia and now outside the distribution range of the subfamily (Figure 1). Manyspecies of this subfamily are known to exhibit a subterranean life and are occasionally Collected through leaf litterextraction (Brown 1949, 1960). Amblyoponine colonies are typically small, consisting of only a dozen to a fewhundred workers (Gotwald & Levieux 1972, Traniello 1982, Hölldobler & Wilson 1990, Ito 1991, Yoshimura &Fisher 2012). The typical mandibular shape of several genera encountered in this subfamily is an adaptation fortheir specialized predatory diet of centipedes and insect larvae found in rotten wood or leaf litter (Brown 1960,Gotwald & Levieux 1972, Masuko 1993, Ito 1993). Another unusual feeding characteristic of someAmblyoponinae species is the feeding from larval hemolymph though non-destructive parental cannibalism(Masuko 1986, Ito 2010). This behavior, considered as “primitive” in ants and linked to some of themorphologically primitive characters (e.g. broad attachment of the petiole to the gaster, see Ward 1994) of thissubfamily have supported the hypothesis that Amblyoponinae is a basal lineage in ants. Recent molecularphylogenetic work has confirmed this conclusion (Moreau & Bell 2013).
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