Zigrasimeciinae
Extinct subfamily of ants
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Zigrasimeciinae is a subfamily of ants, known from the Cretaceous period, originally named as the tribe Zigrasimeciini within the subfamily Sphecomyrminae by Borysenko, 2017,[1] it was elevated to full subfamily in 2020. It contains three described genera.[2] They are sometimes known as iron-maiden ants in reference to their densely spiked mouthparts, reminiscent of an iron maiden torture device, that were likely used to trap prey.[3] Boltonimecia canadensis was described from Campanian Canadian amber out of Alberta, Canada, while the species of Protozigrasimecia and Zigrasimecia are both exclusively known from Cenomanian Burmese amber found in Myanmar.[3]
| Zigrasimeciinae Temporal range: | |
|---|---|
| |
| Zigrasimecia hoelldobleri holotype worker | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Clade: | Pancrustacea |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Hymenoptera |
| Family: | Formicidae |
| Subfamily: | †Zigrasimeciinae Borysenko, 2017 |
| Genera | |
|
See text | |
Genera and species
- Boltonimecia Borysenko, 2017?
- B. canadensis (Wilson, 1985)
- Protozigrasimecia Cao et al., 2020
- P. chauli Cao et al., 2020
- Zigrasimecia Barden & Grimaldi, 2013
Zigrasimeciinae species
Protozigrasimecia chauli
