Myrmecofauna of the Southern Catarinense Restinga Sandy Coastal Plain: New Records of Species Occurrence for the State of Santa Catarina and Brazil

In this study, we analyzed the species richness of the Myrmecofauna in the southern Santa Catarina Restinga Coastal Sandy Plain. We found a total of 71 species distributed along the restinga habitats studied. Myrmicinae was the most speciose subfamily with 41 species, followed by Formicinae (13 species), Ponerinae (eight species) and Dolichoderinae with six species. The Subfamilies Ecitoninae, Pseudomyrmecinae and Ectatomminae were the least speciose with only one species each. We recorded nine new records for the State of Santa Catarina, and 11 records found only in collections of Fomicidae in the state, but not yet documented in literature. This finding reveals the need for studies of ants in the State to demonstrate real knowledge of wildlife and for future conservation projects. Moreover, the results of this study show that the ant fauna of the Restinga of Santa Catarina is composed in large part by the same subfamilies found in other Brazilian ecosystems. The records of nine new cases of ant species and 11 species not yet reported in the literature emphasize the need for studies on the myrmecofauna of the region.