? Formica rufa
Formica rufa worker
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Arthropoda Class: Insecta Order: Hymenoptera Family: Formicidae Genus: Formica Species: F. rufa
Binomial name
Formica rufa L.

Formica rufa, also known as the Southern wood ant or horse ant, is a boreal member of the Formica rufa group of ants, commonly found throughout southern England in both conferous and broadleaf broken woodland and parkland. They are the largest native ant species of the British isles. Physically workers can measure from 8-10 mm in length. They have large mandibles and like many other higher ant species are able to dispense formic acid from thier abdomins as a defence. A common diet for a wood ant colony is invertebrates found around the nest, particularly aphids harvested from the surrounding trees, although they are voracious scavengers. Nests of these ants are large, conspicuous, dome-shaped edifices, usually situated in woodland clearings, where the sun's rays can reach them.F.rufa is commonly used in forrestry and is often introduced into an area as a form of pest management. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (704x625, 332 KB) Formica rufa; worker; © 2004 by M. Betley File links The following pages link to this file: Formicinae Formica rufa ... Scientific classification or biological classification is how biologists group and categorize extinct and living species of organisms. ... Binomial name Aptenodytes forsteri Gray, 1844 For other uses, see Animal (disambiguation). ... Subphyla and Classes Subphylum Trilobitomorpha Trilobita - trilobites (extinct) Subphylum Chelicerata Arachnida - spiders, scorpions, etc. ... Classes & Orders See taxonomy Insects are invertebrate animals of the Class Insecta, the largest and (on land) most widely-distributed taxon within the phylum Arthropoda. ... Suborders Apocrita Symphyta Many families, see article Hymenoptera is one of the larger orders of Insects, comprising the sawflies, wasps, bees, and ants. ... Subfamilies Formicomorph subfamilies Aneuretinae Dolichoderinae Formicinae - e. ... Species very many, see text Formica is a genus of ants. ... In biology, binomial nomenclature is the formal method of naming species. ... Carolus Linnaeus Carl Linnaeus, also known after his ennoblement as (help· info), and in English usually under the Latinized name Carolus Linnaeus (May 23, 1707 – January 10, 1778), the name with which his publications were signed, was a Swedish botanist and physician who laid the foundations for the modern scheme... Boreal may refer to these: Northern from the eponymous Boreas, god of the North Wind in Greek mythology. ... The Formica rufa group is a sub-generic group within the genus Formica, first proposed by Wheeler. ... Subfamilies Dorylomorph subfamilies Apomyrminae Cerapachyinae Dorylinae Ecitoninae Formicomorph subfamilies: Aneuretinae Dolichoderinae Formicinae - e. ... Royal motto (French): Dieu et mon droit (Translated: God and my right) Englands location (dark green) within the British Isles Languages English (de facto) Capital London de facto Largest city London Area – Total Ranked 1st UK 130,395 km² Population – Total (mid-2004) – Total (2001 Census) – Density Ranked 1st...

F. rufa is highly polygynous and often re-adopts post-nuptial queens from its own mother colony, leading to old, multi gallery nests which may contain well over a hundred egg-producing females. these colonies can often measure several meters in height and diameter. Formica rufa is agressively territorial, and will often attack and remove other ant species from the area. Nuptial flights take place during the springtime and are often marked by savage battles between neighbouring colonies as terriotorial boundaries are reestablished. Nuptial flight is an important phase in the reproduction of most ant species. ...

The species can also establish nests using the mechanism of temporary social parasitism, the hosts being species of the Formica fusca group, notably F. fusca and F. lemani, although incipient F. rufa colonies have also been recorded from nests of F. glebaria, F. cunnicularia and similar species including the Lassius genus. Binomial name Formica cunicularia Latreille, 1798 Formica cunicularia (Latreille) is a mining ant of the Formica fusca group. ...