Ponerinae

Ponerinae
Temporal range: Turonian-Recent
Fighting Harpegnathos saltator
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Clade: Pancrustacea
Class: Insecta
Order: Hymenoptera
Family: Formicidae
Clade: Poneria
Subfamily: Ponerinae
Lepeletier, 1835
Type genus
Ponera
Latreille, 1804
Diversity
54 genera
Plectroctena sp. fighting

Ponerinae, or ponerine ants, are a subfamily of poneromorph ants containing about 1,600 species in 54 extant genera. They include Dinoponera gigantea, one of the world's largest species of ant. In several species of ponerine ants, mated workers have replaced the queen as the functional egg-layers. In such queenless species, the reproductive status of workers can only be determined through ovarian dissections.[citation needed]

Description and identification

Ponerinae are most easily identified from other subfamilies by possessing a single-segmented petiole and the gaster usually being constricted between the first and second segments. Odontomachus lack this constriction, but these can be identified from their elongate, straight mandibles attached close together along the front margin of the head and with teeth only at the mandible tips. They are rare examples of stinging ants. Females have 12-segmented antennae, whereas males have 13-segmented antennae.

Behavior

These ants typically nest in soil, forest litter, or rotting logs, and are predacious. They primarily prey on isopods. They mostly live in small colonies of up to 200 workers. They can be found mostly in tropical environments, but have been found in southeastern Canada and New York.[citation needed]

Genera

Phylogeny

The maximum-probability molecular cladogram of the subfamily constructed by Fisher et al. in 2025 is shown here. All genera are represented except for Igaponera, which is only known from a single queen specimen. Six unofficial genus groups are recognized by the authors within the tribe Ponerini, namely the Pachycondyla, Ponera, Harpegnathos, Plectroctena, Hypoponera, and Odontomachus groups.

Ponerinae
Platythyreini

Platythyrea

Ponerini
Pachycondyla genus group

Simopelta

Belonopelta

Thaumatomyrmex

Mayaponera

Rasopone

Neoponera

Dinoponera

Pachycondyla

Ponera genus group

Diacamma

Ponera

Emeryopone

Cryptopone

Ectomomyrmex

Austroponera

Pseudoponera

Sritoponera

Parvaponera

Wadeura

Odontomachus genus group

Unnamed genus

Odontomachus

Anochetus

Odontoponera

Brachyponera

Xiphopelta

Hagensia

Makebapone

Fisheropone

Feroponera

Boltonopone

Dolioponera

Euponera

Bothroponera

Pseudoneoponera

Streblognathus

Phrynoponera

Megaponera

Ophthalmopone

Mesoponera

Myopias

Leptogenys

Subiridopone

Asphinctopone

Corrieopone

Paltothyreus

Buniapone

Promyopias

Harpegnathos genus group

Harpegnathos

Hypoponera genus group

Hypoponera

Plectroctena genus group

Centromyrmex

Psalidomyrmex

Loboponera

Boloponera

Plectroctena

Notes

  1. ↑ This monotypic genus currently contains the species currently known as Neoponera bucki, which is not a true Neoponera species, however it has not yet been formally described as of 2025.

References

  1. ↑ Bolton, B. (2015). "Ponerinae". AntCat. Retrieved 9 January 2015.
  2. ↑ Schmidt, Chris (9 May 2013). "Molecular phylogenetics of ponerine ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae: Ponerinae)". Zootaxa. 3647 (2): 201–250. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.3647.2.1. PMID 26295106.
  3. 1 2 3 "Ponerinae". AntWiki.
  4. ↑ Hoffman, Donald R. (2010). "Ant venoms". Current Opinion in Allergy & Clinical Immunology. 10 (4): 342–346. doi:10.1097/ACI.0b013e328339f325. PMID 20445444. S2CID 4999650.
  5. ↑ Schmidt, C.A.; Shattuck, S.O. (2014). "The higher classification of the ant subfamily Ponerinae (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), with a review of ponerine ecology and behavior". Zootaxa. 3817: 1–242. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.3817.1.1. PMID 24943802.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Dlussky, G.M.; Wedmann, S. (2012). "The poneromorph ants (Hymenoptera, Formicidae: Amblyoponinae, Ectatomminae, Ponerinae) of Grube Messel, Germany: High biodiversity in the Eocene". Journal of Systematic Palaeontology. 10 (4): 725–753. Bibcode:2012JSPal..10..725D. doi:10.1080/14772019.2011.628341. S2CID 83928415. – via Taylor & Francis (subscription required)
  7. ↑ Fisher, Brian L.; Branstetter, Michael G.; Blaimer, Bonnie B.; Borowiec, Marek L.; Camacho, Gabriela P.; Doré, Maël; Ward, Philip S.; Longino, John T. (19 December 2025). "A genus-level classification of the ant subfamily Ponerinae (Hymenoptera, Formicidae)". ZooKeys (1264): 281–349. Bibcode:2025ZooK.1264..281F. doi:10.3897/zookeys.1264.173399. PMC 12743250. PMID 41458144.