10.15470/o3zxvj https://ipt.gbif.es/resource?r=entomological_biodiversity_maamora_forest Hymenoptera_Algeria L. Hamecha Faculty of Sciences, Ben-Youcef Ben-Khedda University

Algiers DZ

M. Mairif Tissemsilt University

Tissemsilt DZ

A. Taheri Abdelmalek Essaadi University

Tétouan MA

Y. Messaoud Ben-Youcef Ben-Khedda University

Algiers DZ

T. Djetti Tissemsilt University

Tissemsilt DZ

L. Hamecha Faculty of Sciences, Ben-Youcef Ben-Khedda University

Algiers DZ

M. Mairif Tissemsilt University

Tissemsilt DZ

A. Taheri Abdelmalek Essaadi University

Tétouan MA

Y. Massaoud Ben-Youcef Ben-Khedda University

Algiers DZ

T. Djetti Tissemsilt University

Tissemsilt DZ

Montse Ferrer Arxius de Miscel·lània Zoologica, Museu de Ciències Naturals de Barcelona

Barcelona Barcelona ES

montseferrerf@gmail.com user 2025-03-25 eng Entomological investigations in western Algeria have led to the first observation of the trap-jaw ant Anochetus ghilianii (Spinola 1851) in the country. Five nests were found under stones in two agricultural orchards in the Hauts Plateaux of Meghila and Hammam Tires (Tissemsilt department). This finding marks the first record of the genus Anochetus in Algeria, increasing the number of ant genera known in the country to 35 and the number of species to 219. This species was so far only known from Morocco and Spain, and suspected to be introduced in the latter. Additionally, a list detailing the other ant species collected in the two orchards is provided. Occurrence GBIF Dataset Type Vocabulary: http://rs.gbif.org/vocabulary/gbif/dataset_type_2015-07-10.xml First record North Africa Tissemsilt Western Algeria Biodiversity n/a This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (CC-BY 4.0) License. Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International https://spdx.org/licenses/CC-BY-4.0.html CC-BY-4.0 In March and April 2024 we surveyed ants in two sites in the Tissemsilt region (western Algeria), about 220 km SW from the capital Algiers (fig. 1), consisting of natural and agricultural environments. The region has a dry, continental climate, classified as BSk according to the Koppen-Geiger climatemap (Kottek et al 2006). Site 1 (fig. 2A): Mghila, municipality of Theniet El Had, agricultural orchard (35.773639, 2.115222, 910 m, 07/03/2024). Site 2 (fig. 2B): Hammam Tires, municipality of Tissemsilt, cultivated wheat orchard (35.604722, 1.789722, 867 m, 20/05/2024). Both fields are located on a vertisol substrate covered with low vegetation characterised by diplotax Diplotaxis harra and donkey cucumber Ecballium elaterium. At each site, we searched for ant nests under stones, and foragers moving on the ground. 1.789722 2.115222 35.773639 35.604722 order Hymenoptera family Formicidae subfamily Dolichderinae subfamily Formicinae subfamily Myrmicinae subfamily Ponerinae Ponerinae is the fourth largest subfamily of Formicidae family in the world (Schmidt and Shattuck 2014), preceded by Dolichoderinae, Formicinae, and Myrmicinae. It is a diverse group with a predominantly tropical distribution (Bolton 1994 2003). In Algeria, this subfamily comprises three genera: Hypoponera Santschi, Odontomachus Latreille, and Ponera Latreille (Bolton 2003, Borowiec 2014).  The genus Anochetus, widely distributed throughout the tropical and subtropical regions globally, includes 124 extant and 9 fossil species, and they are the only trap-jaw ants in the western Palearctic (Bolton 2024). They live in small nests located in soil, termite nests, under logs, in rotten wood, and beneath rocks (Brown 1976, 1978).The Mediterranean region hosts three Anochetus species: Anochetus bytinskii Kugler and Ionescu, 2007, A. ghilianii (Spinola 1851), and Anochetus sedilloti Emery, 1884 (Brown 1978). A. bytinskii is known only from the northern half of Israel  (Kugler and Ionescu 2007); A. sedilloti, has a wide distribution range extending across the northern Afrotropics from Senegal to Ethiopia, is also recorded in Tunisia, and is considered exotic in the Arabian Peninsula to western India (Kugler and Ionescu 2007, Guénard et al 2017); finally, A. ghilianii is known from Morocco and Spain, and thought to be introduced in the latter (Jowers et al 2015). This species is the only one of its genus to reach the extreme western Mediterranean, where it is considered a tertiary relict (Tinaut et al 2005). However, it is not easy to find because of its hypogean habitat. Here, we report the first record of the species in Algeria, the second North African country to document its presence. notPlanned L. Hamecha Faculty of Sciences, Ben-Youcef Ben-Khedda University

Algiers DZ

M. Mairif Tissemsilt University

Tissemsilt DZ

A. Taheri Abdelmalek Essaadi University

Tétouan MA

Y. Messaoud Ben-Youcef Ben-Khedda University

Algiers DZ

T. Djetti Tissemsilt University

Tissemsilt DZ

At each site, we searched for ant nests under stones, and foragers moving on the ground In March and April 2024 we surveyed ants in two sites in the Tissemsilt region (western Algeria), about 220 km SW from the capital Algiers (fig. 1), consisting of natural and agricultural environments. The region has a dry, continental climate, classified as BSk according to the Koppen-Geiger climatemap (Kottek et al 2006). Site 1 (fig. 2A): Mghila, municipality of Theniet El Had, agricultural orchard (35.773639, 2.115222, 910 m, 07/03/2024). Site 2 (fig. 2B): Hammam Tires, municipality of Tissemsilt, cultivated wheat orchard (35.604722, 1.789722, 867 m, 20/05/2024). Both fields are located on a vertisol substrate covered with low vegetation characterised by diplotax Diplotaxis harra and donkey cucumber Ecballium elaterium. At each site, we searched for ant nests under stones, and foragers moving on the ground. The Emberger climategram was used to classify the sites according to the bioclimatic zones (fig. 3). For this purpose, we used climate variables such as the maximum and minimum temperature of respectively the warmest and coldest months with annual precipitation of each site were used to estimate the aridity index (Q-values, Stewart 1969). Anochetus ghilianii was identified based on the key of Kugler and Ionescu (2007). Specimens were preserved in 75-100 % ethanol and kept in the following personal collections: L Hamecha (Ben-Youcef Ben-Khedda Univ., Algeria), M Mairif (Tissemsilt of Univ., Algeria), and J-L Reyes-López (Univ. of Cordoba, Spain). L. Hamecha author Entomological investigations in western Algeria have led to the first observation of the trap-jaw ant Anochetus ghilianii (Spinola 1851) in the country. Five nests were found under stones in two agricultural orchards in the Hauts Plateaux of Meghila and Hammam Tires (Tissemsilt department). This finding marks the first record of the genus Anochetus in Algeria, increasing the number of ant genera known in the country to 35 and the number of species to 219. This species was so far only known from Morocco and Spain, and suspected to be introduced in the latter. Additionally, a list detailing the other ant species collected in the two orchards is provided. In March and April 2024 we surveyed ants in two sites in the Tissemsilt region (western Algeria), about 220 km SW from the capital Algiers (fig. 1), consisting of natural and agricultural environments. The region has a dry, continental climate, classified as BSk according to the Koppen-Geiger climatemap (Kottek et al 2006). Site 1 (fig. 2A): Mghila, municipality of Theniet El Had, agricultural orchard (35.773639, 2.115222, 910 m, 07/03/2024). Site 2 (fig. 2B): Hammam Tires, municipality of Tissemsilt, cultivated wheat orchard (35.604722, 1.789722, 867 m, 20/05/2024). Both fields are located on a vertisol substrate covered with low vegetation characterised by diplotax Diplotaxis harra and donkey cucumber Ecballium elaterium. At each site, we searched for ant nests under stones, and foragers moving on the ground. The Emberger climategram was used to classify the sites according to the bioclimatic zones (fig. 3). For this purpose, we used climate variables such as the maximum and minimum temperature of respectively the warmest and coldest months with annual precipitation of each site were used to estimate the aridity index (Q-values, Stewart 1969). Anochetus ghilianii was identified based on the key of Kugler and Ionescu (2007). Specimens were preserved in 75-100 % ethanol and kept in the following personal collections: L Hamecha (Ben-Youcef Ben-Khedda Univ., Algeria), M Mairif (Tissemsilt of Univ., Algeria), and J-L Reyes-López (Univ. of Cordoba, Spain) 2025-03-25T14:19:00.389+01:00 dataset Hamecha L, Mairif M, Taheri A, Messaoud Y, Djetti T, 2025. A new genus and species from Algeria: the trap-jaw ant Anochetus ghilianii (Hymenoptera, Formicidae). Arxius de Miscel·lània Zoològica 23, 63-67. DOI: 10.32800/amz.2025.23.0063 http://www.gbif.es/ipt/logo.do?r=mcnb-tissue https://ipt.gbif.es/resource?id=entomological_biodiversity_maamora_forest/v2.xml