Survey of ants (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) in the city of Providence (Rhode Island, United States) and a new northern-most record for Brachyponera chinensis (Emery, 1895)

Abstract

We surveyed ants in Providence, Rhode Island, from 2015 to 2019. Methods including repeated pitfall trap sampling and manual searching were used to collect ants at Providence College and a rapid biological assess-ment was conducted at Roger Williams Park. A total of 36 species were identified based on morphology, including the first observations of a colony of Needle Ants (Brachyponera chinensis Emery, 1895) in New England. Twenty-six species identified were new county records and seven species were new state records, representing a substantial update to the list of known ant species in Rhode Island, currently totaling 41 species in Providence and 69 spe-cies from six subfamilies across the state. These results are comparable with similarly scaled surveys conducted at parks and cities across the world, and they also offer a reminder that while urbanization can be associated with reductions in habitat availability for some fauna, cities can be accessible and ecologically important locations for exploring myrmecological biodiversity.