Occurrence of Atta laevigata (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in the South of Espirito Santo State, Brazil. Recently Introduced or Endangered Species?

Vinha Zanuncio, Antonio JoseZanuncio, Jose ColaMayhe-Nunes, AntonioZanetti, RonaldPolanczyk, Ricardo Antonio [UNESP]Serrao, Jose Eduardo2014-05-202014-05-202010-01-01Sociobiology. Chico: California State Univ, v. 56, n. 2, p. 559-564, 2010.0361-6525http://hdl.handle.net/11449/2215Ants of the genus Atta are the main pests of Brazilian agriculture, including annual crops, pasture and reforestation. Atta laevigata (F. Smith) (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) presents a wide distribution from the Northern Amazon Basin Region to Southern Brazil. However, this is the first report of its occurrence in the Espirito Santo State, Brazil where it was found in the Municipality of Castelo at 20 degrees 36'13 South Latitude, 41 degrees 11'05 West Longitude and an average altitude of 100 meters. The low number of nests of A. laevigata compared to those of Atta sexdens rubropilosa Forel may indicate that the first species has been recently introduced or is endangered in Espirito Santo State due to competition with other organisms or by the impact of anthropogenic factors.559-564engleaf-cutting antsAtta laevigataOccurrence of Atta laevigata (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in the South of Espirito Santo State, Brazil. Recently Introduced or Endangered Species?ArtigoWOS:000281622200021Acesso restrito27881567925328700000-0003-0769-9902