Messor
Sign in to saveMessor is a genus of myrmicine ants with more than 100 species, all of which are harvester ants; the generic name comes from the Roman god of crops and harvest, Messor. The subterranean colonies tend to be found in open fields and near roadsides, openings are directly to the surface.
Species
GENUS
- KingdomAnimalia
- PhylumArthropoda
- ClassInsecta
- OrderHymenoptera
- FamilyFormicidae
via GBIF
Museum specimens
- Specimen records
- 547
- With media
- 95
- Family
- Formicidae
- Collections
- CAS, UAM, ASU, SDNHM
- Recorded in
- South Africa, United States, Bulgaria, Greece
Wikidata facts
- Instance of
- taxon
- Parent taxon
- Pheidolini
- Image
- Messor barbarus princess.jpg
Show 4 more facts
- taxon rank
- genus
- taxon name
- Messor
- Commons category
- Messor
- topic's main category
- Category:Messor
Sources (1)
via Wikidata · CC0
~5 min read
Encyclopedic overview
3 sectionsContents
- Species
- References
- External links
Messor is a genus of myrmicine ants with more than 100 species, all of which are harvester ants; the generic name comes from the Roman god of crops and harvest, Messor. The subterranean colonies tend to be found in open fields and near roadsides, openings are directly to the surface.
Colonies can achieve huge sizes and are notable for their intricately designed granaries in which seeds are stored in dry conditions, preventing germination. The structure of Messor spp. nests is complex and the genus on the whole is one of very accomplished architects.
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Messor” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.