Tetramorium inquilinum

Tetramorium inquilinum
T. inquilinum alate queen from France
Scientific classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hymenoptera
Family: Formicidae
Subfamily: Myrmicinae
Genus: Tetramorium
Species:
T. inquilinum
Binomial name
Tetramorium inquilinum
Ward, Brady, Fisher & Schultz, 2015
Synonyms
  • Teleutomyrmex schneideri Kutter, 1950

Tetramorium inquilinum is an ectoparasitic ant found in Europe. It was discovered by Swiss myrmecologist Heinrich Kutter. The species is unusual for lacking a worker caste, the queens and males living entirely off the care of the pavement ant. It has been called "the 'ultimate' parasitic ant" by myrmecologists Edward O. Wilson and Bert Hölldobler.