First records of the non-native ants Monomorium carbonarium (Smith, 1858) and Cardiocondyla mauritanica Forel, 1890 (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in Madrid, Spain, with an update of Linepithema humile (Mayr, 1868) presence in the city
Urban environments often act as gateways for the introduction of non-native ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in Mediterranean regions. Here we report the first records of Monomorium carbonarium (Smith, 1858) and Cardiocondyla mauritanica Forel, 1890 within the urban area of Madrid (Spain), along with...
| Autores: | , , |
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| Tipo de recurso: | artículo |
| Estado: | Versión publicada |
| Fecha de publicación: | 2025 |
| País: | España |
| Institución: | Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC) |
| Repositorio: | DIGITAL.CSIC. Repositorio Institucional del CSIC |
| OAI Identifier: | oai:digital.csic.es:10261/405772 |
| Acceso en línea: | http://hdl.handle.net/10261/405772 https://doi.org/10.20350/digitalCSIC/18089 |
| Access Level: | acceso abierto |
| Palabra clave: | biodiversidad urbana especies alóctonas hormiga argentina hormigas introducidas iNaturalist invasiones biológicas nuevas citas península ibérica registros faunísticos allochthonous species Argentine ant biological invasions faunistic records Iberian Peninsula introduced ants new records urban biodiversity ants |
| Sumario: | Urban environments often act as gateways for the introduction of non-native ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in Mediterranean regions. Here we report the first records of Monomorium carbonarium (Smith, 1858) and Cardiocondyla mauritanica Forel, 1890 within the urban area of Madrid (Spain), along with updated occurrences of Linepithema humile (Mayr, 1868). These detections are mostly associated with irrigated green spaces —such as public parks, private gardens, urban orchards, and landscaped medians— which provide favorable microhabitats for establishment. Our findings confirm that Mo. carbonarium and C. mauritanica are established in the city, extending their known Iberian distributions beyond predominantly coastal areas into the interior of the peninsula. New records of Li. humile highlight its persistence and patchy distribution across Madrid. Overall, these results underscore the role of Mediterranean urban areas as key gateways for the introduction and persistence of allochthonous ant species, emphasizing the importance of sustained monitoring efforts that integrate citizen science data as a valuable complement to professional surveys. These records contribute to understanding the inland expansion pathways of thermophilic ant species in Mediterranean-climate regions. |
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