Population Structure and Social Organization in the Primitive Ant Amblyopone Pallipes (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)

IINTRODUCTIONThe genus Amblyopone contains the most morphologically and behaviorally primitive species in the poneroid complex of ants, and a detailed examination of their social structure could significantly contribute to the reconstruction of social evolution in the Formi- cidae.But because of their cryptic habits and distribution, the biol- ogy of the majority of species of Amblyopone and the related genera Mystrium, Myopopone, Prionopelta, and Onychomyrmex remains almost entirely unknown.Previous investigations have provided information on colony foundation (Haskins, 1928; Haskins and Enzmann, 1938; Haskins and Haskins, 1951), ecology, behavior, and taxonomy (Wheeler, 1900; Brown, 1960; Gotwald and Levieux, 1972; Baroni Urbani, 1978), and physiology (Whelden, 1958).Still, many of the details of social organization in Amblyopone are lack- ing.present in this paper the results of a two-year study on the behavior and ecology of Amblyopone pallipes.