Benjamin D. Hoffmann
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Unrecognized Ant Megadiversity in the Australian Monsoonal Tropics: The Meranoplus berrimah Schödl and Meranoplus snellingi Schödl Complexes Open
We integrate morphological variation, CO1 distance and clustering, and geographic distribution to document unrecognized diversity within Meranoplus ‘berrimah’ and M. ‘snellingi’, members of the M. diversus group of specialist seed harveste…
Granular activated carbon reduces PFAS bioavailability and protects ant colony growth in soil Open
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are persistent contaminants that pose risks to ecological and human health. Soil stabilisation using sorbents such as granular activated carbon (GAC) can reduce PFAS mobility and bioavailability. …
Ecology and mechanisms of parasitism of Iridomyrmex by the thermophilic ant, Melophorus anderseni Open
Melophorus anderseni is a thermophilic ant species that nests near colonies of Iridomyrmex on which it conducts brood raids. We examined their colony founding behavior and foraging ecology to evaluate possible mechanisms that may facilitat…
Suppression of Australian savanna ants shows “the little rulers” do not rule over spider or beetle assemblages Open
Ants are often referred to as “the little things that rule the world” because of the critical roles they play as ecosystem engineers and through trophic and non‐trophic interactions. We describe an experimental test of the influence of ant…
Unrecognized Ant Megadiversity in the Australian Monsoonal Tropics: The <i>Melophorus castaneus</i> Heterick, Castalanelli & Shattuck Species Group (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) Open
This paper continues the documentation of remarkable levels of undescribed ant diversity in the Australian monsoonal (seasonal) tropics. It considers the Melophorus castaneus Heterick, Castalanelli & Shattuck species group, as considered h…
Unrecognised ant megadiversity in the Australian monsoonal tropics: The <i>Melophorus dicyrtos</i> Heterick, Castalanelli and Shattuck complex Open
It is becoming increasingly clear that the Australian monsoonal (seasonal) tropics is a global centre of ant diversity despite only a small proportion of species being described. Several monsoonal ‘species’ have recently been shown to be s…
View article: Alternative DNA Markers to Detect Guam-Specific CRB-G (Clade I) Oryctes rhinoceros (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) Indicate That the Beetle Did Not Disperse from Guam to the Solomon Islands or Palau
Alternative DNA Markers to Detect Guam-Specific CRB-G (Clade I) Oryctes rhinoceros (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) Indicate That the Beetle Did Not Disperse from Guam to the Solomon Islands or Palau Open
A partial mitochondrial DNA Cytochrome Oxidase subunit I (mtCOI) gene haplotype variant of the coconut rhinoceros beetle (CRB) Oryctes rhinoceros, classed as ‘CRB-G (clade I)’, has been the focus of much research since 2007, with reports o…
View article: Alternative DNA Markers to Detect Guam-Specific CRB-G (Clade I) Oryctes rhinoceros (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) Indicate That the Beetle Did Not Disperse from Guam to the Solomon Islands or Palau.
Alternative DNA Markers to Detect Guam-Specific CRB-G (Clade I) Oryctes rhinoceros (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) Indicate That the Beetle Did Not Disperse from Guam to the Solomon Islands or Palau. Open
A partial mitochondrial DNA Cytochrome Oxidase subunit I (mtCOI) gene haplotype variant of the coconut rhinoceros beetle (CRB) Oryctes rhinoceros classed as ‘CRB-G (clade I)’ has been the focus of much research since 2007 with reports of i…
Three new strategies for improving biosecurity and invasive species management to build resilience in Pacific Islands Open
The inaugural Pacific Ecological Security Conference (PESC) was held in October 2022, bringing together over 100 island leaders, policy-makers, natural resource managers and global and regional invasive species experts to prioritise the cr…
View article: The Argentine ant, Linepithema humile: natural history, ecology and impact of a successful invader
The Argentine ant, Linepithema humile: natural history, ecology and impact of a successful invader Open
The Argentine ant, Linepithema humile, is one of the world’s worst invasive species, with established populations in at least 40 countries on six continents. In this review, we synthesise the vast literature on this species in four areas, …
Unrecognised Ant Megadiversity in the Australian Monsoonal Tropics III: The Meranoplus ajax Forel Complex Open
Australia’s monsoonal (seasonal) tropics are a global centre of ant diversity, but are largely unrecognised as such because the vast majority of its species are undescribed. Here we document another case of undescribed hyper-diversity with…
Red imported fire ant Solenopsis invicta buren workers do not have ovaries Open
Workers of the red imported fire ant Solenopsis invicta are repeatedly claimed in the literature not to have ovaries. Here, we demonstrate that we cannot find a source publication that proves the statement, and we show how publications are…
Unrecognised Ant Megadiversity in the Australian Monsoonal Tropics: The Melophorus hirsutipes Heterick, Castelanelli & Shattuck Species Group Open
Melophorus hirsutipes Heterick, Castanelli & Shattuck is a recently described taxon that was presented as occurring throughout most of mainland Australia and showing highly variable morphology. One highly variable character is sculpture, w…
Unrecognised Ant Megadiversity in Monsoonal Australia: The Tetramorium spininode Bolton Group in the Northern Territory Open
We document unrecognised diversity within the Tetramorium spininode Bolton group of the Australian monsoonal tropics, which has a single described species. At the time of its description, T. spininode was known from just two collections, b…
Patterns of European Ant Communities Reveal a Functionally Coherent Holarctic Fauna Open
Here we examine the extent to which European patterns of ant diversity and functional composition conform with those documented in North America. Following protocols previously used in North America, ant species distribution and behavioura…
Quantification of flight times of aerial treatments targeting invasive species: the interplay of helicopter or drone with bait‐delivery systems, flight speed and bait form Open
BACKGROUND Aerial treatments for invasive species management are now common, but we are unaware of any work published in the scientific literature quantifying how the interplay of numerous factors affects flight time and therefore operatio…
Spread of stinging ants to oceanic islands, and the need to raise awareness of prevention and treatment of ant stings Open
Objective Venomous invasive ants are rapidly dispersing throughout oceanic islands. Medics unfamiliar with envenomation or venom‐induced anaphylaxis may be unprepared for the range of possible reactions and corresponding treatments. We det…
The establishment of a trap-jaw ant, Odontomachus ruginodis, in Hawai‘i Open
Here we report the establishment in Hawaiʻi of a trap-jaw ant, Odontomachus ruginodis, a species well known for its potent sting.In June 2017, a farmer on the island of Kauaʻi reported "bites" from large ants and supplied a specimen to the…
Preparing to eradicate a novel invader of unknown biology: a case study from Australia Open
Although there have been many attempts at eradicating exotic ant incursions, most efforts have been unsuccessful, and a lack of specific biological knowledge is believed to have been a major contributing factor.In early May 2013, an exotic…
The first eradication of an exotic ant species from the entirety of Australia: Pheidole fervens Open
In July 2019 an established infestation of Pheidole fervens was detected in Australia for the first time.An eradication program was conducted, and by November 2022 the ant had not been detected for 31 months so it was declared eradicated.T…
Efficacy, non-target impacts, and other considerations of unregistered fipronil-laced baits being used in multiple invasive ant eradication programs Open
International audience
Honey bees are not attracted to multiple new ant bait matrices containing sugar Open
Multiple new ant treatment products containing high volumes of sugar have recently been developed specifically for use in ant management programs. The presence of sugar in these products could potentially attract bees, and any such attract…
Honey bee death from aerosols inadvertently produced from propelled aerial dispersal of a solid ant bait Open
Background Hydrogels are a new bait form, and multiple studies have found minimal potential or actual nontarget impacts associated with their use. However, in 2020, aerial applications of hydrogels containing fipronil unequivocally resulte…
Genome-wide SNPs reveal the social structure and invasion pathways of the invasive tropical fire ant (<i>Solenopsis geminata</i>) Open
Elucidating invasion pathways of invasive species is often challenging because invasive populations frequently have low genetic diversity caused by genetic bottlenecks during introduction events. Genome-wide sequencing such as Restriction …
Towards precision ecology: Relationships of multiple sampling methods quantifying abundance for comparisons among studies Open
Because different sampling techniques will provide different abundance values, it is currently difficult to compare results among many studies to form holistic understandings of how abundance influences ant ecology. Using three sampling me…
Draft mitogenomes of the invasive ant<i>Lepisiota frauenfeldi</i>(Mayr 1855) (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) Open
We present the draft mitochondrial genomes (mitogenomes) of two Lepisiota frauenfeldi (Mayr 1855) workers from two separate invasive populations detected in Western Australia (Perth OK569858) and Queensland (Brisbane OK5569859), Australia.…