A new rescue behavior in the ant Ectatomma muticum Mayr, 1870 (Hymenoptera, Formicidae: Ectatomminae) captured by a trapdoor spider of the genus Neodiplothele Mello-Leitão, 1917 (Araneae: Barychelidae)

André O. Silva-Júnior; Gabriel L. Celante; Adhan G. Carvalho; André F. A. Lira; Benoit J. B. Jahyny

doi:10.37486/2675-1305.ec08004

Authors

André O. Silva-Júnior Universidade Federal Rural de Pernambuco, Recife, PE, Brazil https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2585-0541
Gabriel L. Celante Universidade Federal do Vale do São Francisco, Petrolina, PE, Brazil https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3209-8324
Adhan G. Carvalho Universidade Federal do Vale do São Francisco, Petrolina, PE, Brazil https://orcid.org/0009-0002-9282-9862
André F. A. Lira Universidade Federal Rural de Pernambuco, Recife, PE, Brazil https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8443-4126
Benoit J. B. Jahyny Universidade Federal do Vale do São Francisco, Petrolina, PE, Brazil https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5987-4488

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.37486/2675-1305.ec08004

Keywords:

Caatinga, Insecta, interspecific relations, sandy habitat

Abstract

Rescue behavior among eusocial insects, particularly ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), is a remarkable cooperative interaction in which individuals risk their lives to save others without direct reward. This study reports the rescue behavior of the ant Ectatomma muticum Mayr, 1870 (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), which was freed from a trap set by a spider Neodiplothele Mello-Leitão, 1917 (Mygalomorphae: Barychelidae) in the paleodunes of the São Francisco River, in the Caatinga, northeastern Brazil. This is the first record of a rescue behavior in Ectatomminae and of a rescue involving an ant trapped in the silk of a trapdoor spider. Ectatomma muticum may represent a new model for the study of rescue behavior.

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