A synoptic review of the ants of California (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)
Author
Ward, P. S.
text
Zootaxa
2005
936
1
68
journal article
39107
10.5281/zenodo.171144
7b235ee0-db22-4606-8a01-05936f594932
171144
Genus
Dorymyrmex
Mayr
These generalist, groundnesting ants are frequent in open habitats at medium to low elevations. The two commonest species,
D. bicolor
Wheeler
and
D
.
insanus
(Buckley)
, are usually distinguishable on the basis of color, with the former being bicolored (head and mesosoma orange or reddishbrown, metasoma brownishblack) and the latter unicolorous dark brown, but some samples are intermediate in color.
Snelling (1995a)
describes additional worker differences in head shape and eye size, but these characters are quite variable and are not always reliable. This group of ants continues to be burdened with taxonomic uncertainties, possibly as a result of occasional interspecific hybridization.
Species identification: key in
Snelling (1995a)
. Additional references.
Berkelhamer (1984)
,
Johnson (1989b)
,
Martinez (1995)
,
Snelling and George (1979)
,
Trager (1988a)
,
Wheeler and Wheeler (
1986g
)
.