The Ants of Africa Taxonomic Name Index

This page enables linked access to the names presently valid for all the species for which I have been able to find African records. The indices also list as many of the names associated with each species, that is the names of junior synonyms, subspecies, incorrectly applied or unavailable names, as I could identify. The Catalogue by Barry Bolton (1995), of course, has been invaluable in this context. In his modern revisionary studies, Bolton (see reference list) has used a tactic of reducing all subspecies, varieties, unavailable names and the like to the status of junior synonyms, unless, that is, he has raised or revived such forms to full species status. Whilst that may be justified as a tidying up of systematic confusion, it means that what sometimes were quite marked variations in size or colour etc have been buried under a simple two word summary as, for example, "considerable variation".

Note that all names under Acantholepis are now redefined as Lepisiota.

Because of the great number of code letters and numbers which have been used, especially in the bionomics literature, I have attempted also to list all those (with links to the appropriate species when that has proved possible).