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Ants of Zihuatanejo

FAMILY FORMICIDAE

Cecropia Ants and Allies
Azteca (Genus)

-Animals (Kingdom Animalia)

-Arthropods (Phylum Arthropoda)

-Hexapods (Subphylum Hexapoda)

-Insects (Class Insecta)

-Winged and Once-winged Insects (Subclass Pterygota)

-Ants, Bees, Wasps, and Sawflies (Order Hymenoptera)

-Narrow-waisted Wasps, Ants, and Bees (Suborder Apocrita)

-Ants, Bees, and Stinging Wasps (Infraorder Aculeata)

-Superfamily Formicoidea

-Ants (Family Formicidae)

-Odorous Ants (Subfamily Dolichoderinae)

-Tribe Leptomyrmecini

-Cecropia Ants and Allies (Genus Azteca)


Cecropia ants and their allies (genus Azteca) are arboreal ants best known for their tight mutualistic relationships with tropical plants, especially Cecropia trees. These ants are typically medium-sized, slender, and yellowish to dark brown, and they live in large, aggressive colonies within hollow stems or branches provided by their host plants. In exchange for shelter and food rewards, Azteca ants fiercely defend their hosts against herbivores, vines, and competing plants, often swarming intruders within seconds. Many species also tend sap-feeding insects such as scale insects for honeydew, adding another layer to their ecological interactions.



Diet

  • Omnivorous, feeding on plant nectar, honeydew produced by sap-feeding insects (such as scale insects and treehoppers), pollen, fungi, and small insects.

  • Workers also prey on caterpillars, beetles, and other arthropods that threaten their host plants.

  • Many species tend sap-feeding insects, protecting them in exchange for sugary honeydew.

Range

  • The genus Azteca is distributed from Mexico through Central America and much of tropical South America, extending to Brazil and Bolivia.

  • In Mexico, species occur along both the Pacific and Gulf slopes, including Guerrero and the Zihuatanejo region.

  • Most abundant in tropical lowland forests.

Habitat

  • Inhabits tropical dry forests, tropical rainforests, mangrove forests, gallery forests, secondary forests, and forest edges.

  • Many species nest in hollow trees, dead branches, natural cavities, or beneath bark.

  • Several species are famous for their close association with Cecropia trees, living inside the hollow stems and aggressively defending their host from herbivores and climbing vines.

Size

  • Worker length: 2–6 mm (0.08–0.24 in)

  • Queen length: 7–10 mm (0.3–0.4 in)

  • Colonies often contain tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of workers.

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