Kazuo Ogata

Ants of the genus Myrmecia Fabricius: a preliminary review and key to the named species (Hymenoptera: Formicidae: Myrmeciinae)

Taxonomic notes, a checklist, and a key to most of the 89 recognized, currently named species of Myrmecia are presented. Twenty-seven species or species complexes are discussed in detail, and eight species described as new—M. acuta (Western Australia), M. borealis (N. Queensland), M. browningi (South Australia), M. erecta (WA, SA), M. eungellensis (N. Qld), M. fabricii (N. Qld), M. loweryi (New South Wales, Australian Capital Territory), and M. tridentata (NSW). Fourteen new synonyms are proposed (senior names listed first): M. brevinoda Forel = M. decipians Clark = M. longinodis Clark; M. froggatti Forel = M. eupoecila (Clark) = M. excavata (Clark) = M. greavesi (Clark); M. fulgida Clark = M. suttoni Clark; M. harderi Forel = M. celaena (Clark); M. nigriceps Mayr = M. fasciata Clark; M. occidentalis (Clark) = M. opaca (Clark); M. pavida Clark = M. atrata Clark; M. rowlandi Forel = M. cordata Clark = M. cardigaster Brown; M. testaceipes (Clark) = M. dixoni (Clark); M. vindex F. Smith = M. vindex basirufa ...

The Argentine ant, Linepithema humile, in Japan: Assessment of impact on species diversity of ant communities in urban environments

The Argentine ant Linepithema humile (Mayr) invaded the Hiroshima Prefecture in south‐west Japan some time before 1990. In this report, we describe the distribution of this exotic ant species and assess its impact on indigenous ant communities in urban areas. L. humile is now widely distributed mainly in urban areas and surrounding secondary vegetation of the cities Hatsukaichi and Hiroshima. The impact assessment suggested that L. humile reduced species diversity of local, indigenous ant communities. There was differential sensitivity of indigenous ant species to the invasion of L. humile. Some ant species disappeared in parks infested with L. humile; for example, Pheidole noda, Pheidole indica and Lasius japonicus. L. humile seemed to be superior to these ant species in certain traits and habits, such as mobility, recruitment ability, aggressiveness and omnivory. In contrast, Paratrechina sakurae and Camponotus vitiosus were less affected by L. humile infestation. The mechanisms allowing such coexistence seemed to be small body size (P. sakurae) and arboreal nesting habits (C. vitiosus).

The ant genus Leptanilla: discovery of the worker-associated male of L.japonica, and a description of a new species from Taiwan (Hymenoptera: Formicidae: Leptanillinae)

The male and female of Leptanilla japonica Baroni Urbani are described. This is the first worker‐associated male to be discovered in subfamily Leptanillinae. Leptanilla taiwanensis is described as new based on the worker and female from Taiwan, the first record of Leptanillinae from the island. An ecological note on the food of the ants is given. Implications of the male morphology and taxonomic positions of the other leptanilline genera based on males are discussed.

Diversity of pselaphine beetles (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Pselaphinae) in eastern Thailand

Pselaphine beetles (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Pselaphinae) are cosmopolitan, species‐rich, and yet poorly studied, particularly in the tropics. We sampled beetles in three types of primary forest and two types of disturbed forest habitats in eastern Thailand to assess the utility of pselaphine beetles as bioindicators of forest disturbance. We simultaneously measured leaf litter mass, soil moisture, soil acidity and canopy cover at each site to infer which environmental factors affect pselaphine beetle diversity and abundance. At each site, pselaphine beetles were extracted from ten 1 m2 samples of leaf litter and soil with Tullgren funnels. We sampled 1867 adult beetles representing six supertribes, 51 genera and 114 morphospecies; 7% of the genera and 92% of the species were undescribed. Forest types differed significantly in species richness, abundance, diversity and evenness. Primary forest had greater numbers of species and individuals, and higher diversity indices (H′). Teak plantation and secondary forest had substantially fewer individuals and species of pselaphine beetles. Species composition differed between primary and degraded forests. Canopy cover, soil moisture, and leaf litter mass positively correlated with beetle species richness and abundance. Leaf litter mass and soil moisture were the two most important factors affecting the diversity of pselaphine beetle assemblages. Among the 114 morphospecies collected, 43 morphospecies were specific to two or three habitats and 64 morphospecies were found only in a single habitat. Thus pselaphine beetles appear to have rather narrow habitat requirements and their presence/absence was correlated with environmental differences. These traits make pselaphine beetles a suitable bioindicator taxon for assessing forest litter diversity and monitoring habitat change.

Subterranean species of the ant genus Crematogaster in Asia (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)

Three Crematogaster ant species, C. (Orthocrema) javanica Menozzi, C. (O.) myops Forel and C. (O.) masukoi sp. nov., share reduced compound eyes which characterizes them among Asian species of the subgenus Orthocrema. The new species is described based on material from Borneo. It can be distinguished from C. javanica and C. myops by its smooth surface of clypeus and acutely produced subpetiolar process. Reduced compound eyes and yellowish body suggest that these three species are subterranean.

Annual fire resilience of ground-dwelling ant communities in Hiraodai Karst Plateau grassland in Japan

The fire resilience of ground‐dwelling ant assemblages in grassland subjected to annual fire management was investigated. Study sites consisted of three burnt sites and three unburnt sites in grasslands on the Hiraodai Karst Plateau in Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. Ground‐dwelling ants were sampled by Winkler extraction and collected at 10 days and 1, 2, 3 and 6 months post‐fire. In total 33 ant species belonging to 25 genera in six subfamilies were collected from the burnt and unburnt sites. Eight of the 29 ant species collected at burnt sites were restricted to burnt sites, while four of the 25 ant species collected at unburnt sites were restricted to unburnt sites. Non‐metric multidimensional scaling and analysis of similarities revealed that the ant assemblages in the burnt sites at 10 days and 1 month post‐fire were clearly separated from the assemblages observed at 2, 3 and 6 months post‐fire. The results suggested that the ground‐dwelling ant fauna in the study area were highly resilient to fire at 2 months post‐fire and that the annual fire regime did not have a marked effect on species richness.

Clustering of ant communities and indicator species analysis using self-organizing maps.

To understand the complex relationships that exist between ant assemblages and their habitats, we performed a self-organizing map (SOM) analysis to clarify the interactions among ant diversity, spatial distribution, and land use types in Fukuoka City, Japan. A total of 52 species from 12 study sites with nine land use types were collected from 1998 to 2012. A SOM was used to classify the collected data into three clusters based on the similarities between the ant communities. Consequently, each cluster reflected both the species composition and habitat characteristics in the study area. A detrended correspondence analysis (DCA) corroborated these findings, but removal of unique and duplicate species from the dataset in order to avoid sampling errors had a marked effect on the results; specifically, the clusters produced by DCA before and after the exclusion of specific data points were very different, while the clusters produced by the SOM were consistent. In addition, while the indicator value associated with SOMs clearly illustrated the importance of individual species in each cluster, the DCA scatterplot generated for species was not clear. The results suggested that SOM analysis was better suited for understanding the relationships between ant communities and species and habitat characteristics.

Revision of the Crematogaster brevis complex in asia (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)

The Crematogaster brevis complex is revised and seven species and one subspecies, including one new species, are recognized. Two species groups are established based on the worker caste. The C. brevis group contains two species: brevis Emery, 1887; and overbecki Viehmeyer, 1916. The C. treubi group contains five species and one subspecies: bouvardi Santschi, 1920. stat. nov.; kojimai sp. nov.; treubi Emery, 1896; treubi apilis Forel, 1913; walshi Forel, 1902; and yappi Forel, 1901. The following new synonymies are proposed: C. treubi Emery, 1896 = C. millardi Forel, 1902 = C. treubi vastatrix Forel, 1911. A key to the species based on the worker caste is given. Crematogaster jacobsoni Forel, 1911 is transferred to the subgenus Crematogaster.

Description and DNA barcoding of Crematogaster fraxatrix Forel, 1911 and two new closely related species from Cambodia and Indonesia (hymenoptera, Formicidae)

Abstract Crematogaster fraxatrix Forel, 1911 and two new species, C. chhangi sp. n. and C. simboloni sp. n., are described from Cambodia and Indonesia, respectively. DNA sequences were generated for C. fraxarix and the two newly described species using 3 amplications of two regions of the mitochondrial gene COI with a total of 1129 bp. The mean interspecific divergences are 9.4% and 23.5% for C. fraxatrix vs. C. chhangi, C. simboloni, respectively. DNA sequences reveal that C. simboloni is found to be genetically distinct from the other two species, but C. chhangi is not distinct from C. fraxatrix.

Comparison of the growth traits of a commercial pioneer tree species, paper mulberry (Broussonetia papyrifera L. Vent.), with those of shade-tolerant tree species: investigation of the ecophysiological mechanisms underlying shade-intolerance

In rural areas of northern Laos, a commercially valuable pioneer tree species, paper mulberry (Broussonetia papyrifera L. Vent.) has been recommended for intercropping under plantations of commercial trees. However, less is understood about the growth of this pioneer tree species in the understorey and the mechanism underlying the shade intolerance. We measured growth characteristics for seedlings of paper mulberry under four light intensities. We compared the relative growth rates in aboveground biomass and standing leaf area (RGRmass and RGRleaf), light-capture efficiency, and seeding-level mass-based daily photosynthetic rates (Amass) with those of field-grown seedlings of eight shade-tolerant species to identify factors potentially responsible for shade-intolerance. Most growth traits of the paper mulberry seedlings did not differ consistently from those of the shade tolerant species. The ecophysiological–architectural model software showed higher Amass and RGRmass capacity in paper mulberry than in shade-tolerant species. Despite their higher RGRmass, paper mulberry seedlings had negative RGRleaf under shaded conditions due to short leaf lifespan. The linear RGRmass–RGRleaf relationship for paper mulberry had a high RGRmass intercept, indicating that a high RGRmass was required to provide positive RGRleaf. Progressive decreases in standing leaf area with time, and possibly photosynthesis, appear to be responsible for the shade-intolerance of paper mulberry. Although intercropping of paper mulberry has been suggested in the species’ native region, understorey cultivation of paper mulberry would only be possible with relatively open canopies.