Worldwide Spread of <em>Tetramorium lucayanum</em> (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)
Abstract
Tetramorium lucayanum Wheeler, described from the Bahamas, was long thought to be of West Indian origin. This species, however, is actually originally from Africa, and has been transported to the West Indies and elsewhere through human commerce. To examine the worldwide spread of T. lucayanum, I compiled and mapped specimen records from > 75 sites. I documented the earliest known T. lucayanum records for 22 geographic areas (countries and West Indies Islands), including 3 for which I found no previously published records: Gambia, Tortola, and Vieques. Tetramorium lucayanum has widely scattered records from 12 tropical African countries, primarily from forested sites. Exotic records of T. lucayanum come from 7 West Indies islands, Brazil, and greenhouses in Ireland and Italy. All outdoor records of T. lucayanum are from tropical sites, except for 2 subtropical records, both from urban Nassau, the capital of the Bahamas (25.1 °N): the original type locale and my new record from the local zoo, 2.5 km to the west. Most exotic records come from Cuba and Jamaica, but even on these islands T. lucayanum appears to be fairly rare and with no discernable ecological impact.La hormiga, Tetramorium lucayanum Wheeler, fue descrita de las Bahamas, y por mucho tiempo se pensó que era de origen antillano. Esta especie, sin embargo, es en realidad de origin Áfricana, y ha sido transportado a las Indias Occidentales y a otros lugares a través del comercio humano. Para examinar la disseminación mundial de T. lucayanum, he compilado y marcado en un mapa los registros de especímenes recolectados en más de 75 sitios. He documentado los primeros registros conocidos de T. lucayanum de 22 áreas geográficas (países y las Islas de las Indias Occidentales), incluyendo tres para los que no encontré registros publicados anteriormente: Gambia, Tortola, y Vieques. Los registros de Tetramorium lucayanum están muy dispersas en 12 países tropicales de África, principalmente en los sitios forestales. Registros exóticas de T. lucayanum provienen de siete islas de las Indias Occidentales, Brasil, y de invernaderos en Irlanda e Italia. Todos los registros de areas libres de T. lucayanum son de sitios tropicales, con la excepción de dos registros subtropicales, ambos de las zonas urbanas de Nassau, la capital de las Bahamas (25.1 °N): el sitio donde fue encontrado el tipo y de mi nuevo registro de la especie en un zoológico local, a 2,5 km hacia el oeste. La mayoría de los registros exóticos provienen de Cuba y Jamaica, pero aún en estas islas T. lucayanum parece ser bastante raro y sin un impacto ecológico perceptible.
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