Atta (ant)

Atta
Queen of A. colombica
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hymenoptera
Family: Formicidae
Subfamily: Myrmicinae
Tribe: Attini
Genus: Atta
Fabricius, 1805
Type species
Atta cephalotes
Diversity[1]
17 species
Synonyms
  • Archeatta Gonçalves, 1942
  • Epiatta Borgmeier, 1950
  • Neoatta Gonçalves, 1942
  • Oecodoma Latreille, 1818
  • Palaeatta Borgmeier, 1950

Atta is a genus of New World ants of the subfamily Myrmicinae. It contains at least 17 known species.

Atta leafcutter ants are relatively large, rusty red or brown in colour, and have a spiny body and long legs. The three main castes within a nest are the queen, worker, and soldier.[2] Only the queens and males have wings (alate), and these ants are also known as reproductives or swarmers. Although most of the ants in the nest are female, only the queens produce eggs. Queens are usually over 20 millimetres (25⁄32 in) long.[citation needed]

  1. ^ Bolton, B. (2014). "Atta". AntCat. Retrieved 20 July 2014.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference Natural_History_Museum was invoked but never defined (see the help page).