Maritime trap-jaw ants (Hymenoptera, Formicidae, Ponerinae) of the Indo-Australian region - redescription of Odontomachus malignus Smith and description of a related new species from Singapore, including first descriptions of males.

ABSTRACT: The maritime trap-jaw ant Odontomachus malignus Smith, 1859 is thought to be widespread throughout islands in the Indo-Pacific and parts of the Oriental realm. Because of its unique nesting preference for harsh littoral habitat and distinct morphology, O. malignus has usually been assumed to consist of only one species. We, however, describe a new species similar to O. malignus found in the mangroves of Singapore, Southeast Asia - Odontomachus litoralis sp. nov. We find strong evidence of both species existing in (near) sympatry, and also distinct morphological differences between O. malignus and the new species. Additional complementary DNA evidence in the form of COI barcodes (313 bp) supporting putative species identification and delimitation is

SUBMITTER: Wang WY 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7052037 | biostudies-literature | 2020

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature