Caste-plasticity

Guides

• Amblyoponinae

  Dracula ants, Vampire ants

  Amblyoponinae is an ancient, relictual subfamily of ants characterized by specialized subterranean predatory habits and unique 'Dracula ant' behavior, in which adult workers pierce the integument of their own larvae to imbibe haemolymph. The subfamily contains 13 extant genera and originated in the mid-Cretaceous approximately 107 million years ago. Crown group diversification occurred in the Late Paleocene/Early Eocene. The subfamily exhibits remarkable morphological and behavioral diversity, including convergent evolution of army ant-like behaviors in some lineages and highly plastic caste systems in others.

  antsFormicidaeponeromorphsubterraneanpredatorDracula-antshemolymph-feedingcryptobioticancient-lineageCretaceous-origincaste-plasticityarmy-ant-convergence