How to Mount Ants

Shehzad Salman
Material Masters Student
• Ant specimens preserved in absolute College of food and
alcohol agriculture,
• Pins No. 2 or 3 King Saud University
Riyadh,
• Point paper
Kingdom Saudi Arabia
• Forceps Email:
• Glue shehzadsalman@gmail.com
• Point punch
• Petri dish
• Microscope

Method
• Pin is placed though point at 2.5cm
depth.
• Put a small amount of glue to tip of piont.
• Under microscope pick an ant with
forceps and place its left side on glue so
that tip of point stay between meso and
meta coxa. Pincher
• Relax its legs and antennae with help of
pin or fine brush.
• Two types of labels are used, locality
labels and determination labels.
• Labels can be set with the help of pinning
block.
Dorsal & Lateral View Pinning Block

Saudi Arabia, King Saud

University Solenopsis maxillosa 
25°22.986'N, 47°16.712', Emery, 1900
Alt. 559m. 18. II. 2013
Hand Pincking

Locality label Determination label

Ants in petri dish with temporary label Mounted ants in box

Ant fauna (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) of Riyadh
Province, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Introduction Shehzad Salman
Masters Student
Ants are most diverse and abundant of all Supervisor: Prof. Abdulrahman S.
insects. They are adapted for a variety of Aldawood
habitats including arid deserts, pools, Co-supervisor: Dr. Mostafa R. sharaf
rainforests, sea coasts and deep in soil to College of food and agriculture Sciences,
King Saud University Riyadh,
high altitudes. They also vary greatly in
Kingdom Saudi Arabia
their size, behavior, nesting habits and
feeding preferences. Their size vary from Collection sites
less than 1 millimeter to nearly 40
millimeters. They feed on seeds, grasses,
fungi, sap secreted from sap sucking
insects, but mostly are carnivores and
scavengers (Hölldobler and Edward, 1990; Riyadh
Bolton, 1994).

Objectives
• Ant fauna of Riyadh Province will be Methodology
listed. • Samples Collection
• Keys to recorded and collected
subfamilies, genera and species will be
given to facilitate recognition of taxa. • Mounting
• Re-descriptions of shortly described
species will be presented. • Specimen Examination
• Distribution maps of ant species will be
provided.
• Biological and Ecological notes of • Maps & Images
different ant species will be presented construction

References
• Bolton, B., 1994. Identification Guide to the Ant Genera of the World. Harvard
University Press, London, 1-6.
• Hölldobler, B., Edward, O.W., 1990. The ants. Harvard University Press.