9419242 WARD The purpose of this project is to enhance our understanding of ant biology and taxonomy. One part of the project focuses on the genus Pseudomyrmex, a group of ants which are common and widespread in the New World tropics. The species of Pseudomyrmex will be distinguished from one another on the basis of morphology, new species will be described and given names, keys for species identification will be developed, and the historical and biological relationships among species will be analyzed. Because these ants are confined to the New World tropics their histories may tell us something about the geographical history of Central and South America. Moreover, many Pseudomyrmex species live in intimate, mutually beneficial associations with specialized plants: the plants provide shelter for the ants and the ants in return protect their "host plant" from plant-feeding insects and vertebrates. An improved classification of Pseudomyrmex ants will help us understand how these symbiotic associations with plants originate. It could also provide clues as to how we might manipulate ant populations to protect plants of economic importance to man. A second part of this project involves studying the classification and relationships which are collectively known as the "poneroid group". The ants in this group display an amazing range of biological or ecosystem roles: some are scavengers, some are predators, some timid and some rapacious (e.g. army ants). One subgroup of species is even comprised of "agricultural" ants that culture fungi in their nests for food. The aim of this second study is to improve our systematic knowledge of these ants and to construct a classification which accurately summarizes the relationships among members of the group. The currently existing classification is believed to be deficient because of recent evidence that some of the subfamilies, tribes and genera are artificially grouped assemblages of species, defined by characters that are superficial in nature and not reflective of the historical relationships among the species. In this study, as well as the first, the primary source of data to be used is morphology; the resulting improvement in classification will give us better insight into the ecology and behavior of this diverse group of ants. %%% This study will contribute to our understanding of tropical biodiversity of ants. Ants are important components of ecosystems and, in terms of human economics, include several members that are beneficial as well as those few that are considered pests. ***
