Formicidae in some palm groves in Algeria are composed of Myrmicinae (387.9 ± 183.8 individuals/month). Formicinae (242.2 ± 182.6 individuals/month). Ponerinae (0.1 ± 0.3 individuals/month) and Dolichodirinae (75.8 ± 55.7 individuals/month). Within the latter. Tapinoma nigerrimum was the only one represented. where it was strongly recorded by sticky traps (2.2 ± 7.7 individuals/report) with a total of 427 individuals. This species has a wide spatial variation in abundance. with values ranging from 57 (station 3) to 385 individuals (station 5). As for temporal variations. it was very abundant in February (158 individuals) and March (183 individuals). while it was weakly detected in August (11 individuals). The abundance and distribution of this species were probably influenced by several factors including precipitation (r = 0.57; p = 0.041) which was positively correlated with catches. For biometrics. females (6.2 ± 0.2mm) were larger than males (4.53 ± 0.59mm) and female workers (3.22 ± 0.13mm). Indeed. the future queens were characterized by a thorax (2.1 ± 0.1mm) and an abdomen (2.1 ± 0.1mm) of very large size than the other castres.

Username
Password