Vitsika


Vitsika is a Malagasy genus of ants in the subfamily Myrmicinae. Described in 2014, the genus contains 14 species. The genus Myrmisaraka described in the same publication was synonymized with this genus by Fisher & Bolton in 2016 after molecular data placed its two species, M. brevis and M. producta, nested inside Vitsika.

Description

are known for all species except V. obscura. The queens may be alate or ergatoid, or both forms may occur within a single species. It is possible that all species will be found to produce both ergatoids and alates when the species are better represented in collections. Two species exhibit morphological intermediates between alate and ergatoid forms, and two species appear to be polygynous.
Worker-associated males are known for V. crebra, V. breviscapa and V. labes. In addition, the males of three other species, collected in isolation, are present in collections. Similar in size to the conspecific worker or slightly smaller.

Species