Messor arenarius (Fabricius) is a harvester ant species, which is mainly distributed in deserts of the Middle East and North Africa. Ants of this species dig their nests in loess or sandy soils. In Israel, this ants’ species is distributed in the Negev Desert and in sandy soils along the Mediterranean Coastal Plain. In this work, 12 sites of natural habitats in the Northern Coastal Plain of Israel were surveyed for surface activity of M. arenarius ants. These ants were found in 3 out of these 12 natural habitats. Two of these sites where M. arenarius ants were found were subjected to disturbance, caused by development works during the period of this survey. It is concluded, that the populations of M. arenarius in the Northern Mediterranean Coastal Plain of Israel are endangered. It is also concluded, that the presence of either Artemisia monosperma or Retama raetam bushes in certain habitats in the Northern Coastal Plain of Israel, are not necessary or sufficient conditions for presence of M. arenarius in these same habitats.
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Ben-Mordechai, J. and Kugler, J. (1976). Ecology of ants in the desert loess plain (Sede Zin) of Sede Boqer (Central Negev). Israel Journal of Zoology, 25, pp. 216–217.
Ben-Mordechai, J. (1981). Ecology of ants in the loess plain – Sede-Zin at Sede Boker. M.Sc. Thesis, Tel-Aviv University (In Hebrew).
Delye, G. (1968). Recherches sur l’Écologie, la Physiologie et l’Éthologie des fourmis du Sahara. Ph.D. These, Université d’Aix-Marseille, 155 pp.
Delye, G. (1971). Observations sur le nid et le comportement constructeur de Messor arenarius (Hyménoptères Formicidae). Insectes Sociaux, 1, pp. 15–20.
Kugler, J. (1988). The zoogeography of social insects of Israel and Sinai. In: Yom-Tov, Y. and Tchernov, E. (eds.) The zoogeography of Israel. Pp. 251–275, Dordrecht: Dr. W. Junk.
Steinberger, Y., Leschner, H. and Shmida, A. (1991). Chaff piles of harvester ant (Messor spp.) nests in a desert ecosystem. Insectes Sociaux, 38, pp. 241–250.
Thomé, G. (1969a). Repartition geographique des fourmis du Liban (Hym. Form.). Thèse, Université de Toulouse, 77 pp.
Thomé, G. (1996). Formicidae. Etude de la diversité biologique No. 4. Ministère de l’Agriculture à Beyrouth (Eds.). P. 85–87.
Thomé, G. and Thomé, H. (1981). Les fourmis du genra Messor en Syrie. Position Systématique. Desription de quelques ailés et de formes nouvelles. Répartition géographique. Ecologia Mediterranea, 7, pp. 139–153.
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Warburg, I. (2000). Preference of seeds and seed particles by Messor arenarius (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) during food choice experiments. Annals of the Entomological Society of America, 93, pp. 1095–1099.
Warburg, I. (2020). Food recognition as reflected in seed handling by Messor arenarius ants. Ecological Entomology, 45, pp. 1212–1214.
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Messor arenarius (Fabricius) is a harvester ant species, which is mainly distributed in deserts of the Middle East and North Africa. Ants of this species dig their nests in loess or sandy soils. In Israel, this ants’ species is distributed in the Negev Desert and in sandy soils along the Mediterranean Coastal Plain. In this work, 12 sites of natural habitats in the Northern Coastal Plain of Israel were surveyed for surface activity of M. arenarius ants. These ants were found in 3 out of these 12 natural habitats. Two of these sites where M. arenarius ants were found were subjected to disturbance, caused by development works during the period of this survey. It is concluded, that the populations of M. arenarius in the Northern Mediterranean Coastal Plain of Israel are endangered. It is also concluded, that the presence of either Artemisia monosperma or Retama raetam bushes in certain habitats in the Northern Coastal Plain of Israel, are not necessary or sufficient conditions for presence of M. arenarius in these same habitats.
All Time | Past 365 days | Past 30 Days | |
---|---|---|---|
Abstract Views | 433 | 145 | 32 |
Full Text Views | 13 | 1 | 0 |
PDF Views & Downloads | 27 | 4 | 0 |