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last updated 9.Mar.2006


Gracilidris

Gracilidris ants are rare nocturnal insects known from open scrub forests in Brazil, Argentina, and Paraguay, as well as from a single fossil in the Dominican amber.  The single extant species, G. pombero*, nests in small colonies in the soil.  These slender dolichoderine ants were formally described only very recently, indicative of the tremendous amount of yet-undiscovered biological diversity in the Neotropics.


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Gracilidris pombero

Gracilidris pombero

Gracilidris pombero

Gracilidris pombero nest entrance

Gracilidris discovery site

*Pombero is a night spirit in Guaraní folklore, and the ant was named for its nocturnal habits.


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