A checklist of the ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) of the department of Antioquia, Colombia and new records for the country

Antioquia is a state (department) of Colombia, located in the

northwestern Andes of South America. Geologically, the northwestern

region of the Western Range in Antioquia and Chocó

includes the fault resulting from the connection between the

Isthmus of Panamá and South America. The Occidental and

Central cordilleras in Colombia are characterized by a number

of reliefs, valleys and water basins, containing historical

biological refuges and endemisms. In this study, we present

the first species-level checklist of the 255 species (in 64 genera

and 14 subfamilies) of ants currently known in Antioquia. One

hundred and fifty-two (152) species had previously been registered

for the state in different publications. Here, 103 additional

species are recognized. Most of these species are distributed in

other bioregions of the country as well. Forty-six percent are

present in the Amazon Province and 36% in the Colombian

Orinoco River basin. Less than 3% are found in the arid lands

of the Colombian Caribbean area, Guyana, and the Colombian

Pacific Province, plus the Caribbean islands. Sixty-three percent

of the species are shared with Costa Rica. Our checklist constitutes

the largest roster of ants at the species level for a state in

Colombia to date and constitutes the beginning of the assessment

of ant diversity in Antioquia. Many more field trips are

necessary to gain a better understanding of the ant composition

of this state. The following 13 species are new to the records for

Colombia: Azteca diabolica, Camponotus amoris, C. eurynotus,

C. pachylepis, C. propinquus, C. tonduzi, Cerapachys toltecus,

Cylindromyrmex whymperi, Myrmicocrypta urichi, Pheidole

angulifera, Pseudomyrmex lisus, Solenopsis subterranea and

Trachymyrmex zeteki.