Abstract
The ant fauna of the Dolní Pojizeří region (Central Bohemia, Czech Republic) was studied intensively between May 2018 and February 2020. We also used our older data, gathered from 1988 onwards.
Ants were collected from 74 localities spread throughout the region. In the studied region, 53 ant species are known, i.e. 58.9% of the 90 species known to occur in Bohemia.
The most interesting localities were former military training areas covered by steppic vegetation. These are above all, rocky steppe in the Radouč National Natural Monument and the neighbouring sandy steppe at Radouč, where we found altogether 27 ant species, and clayey steppe near Milovice with 26 species.
The rarest species recorded was Lasius carniolicus Mayr, 1961 known in Czech Republic from only two workers found in 2009 in Milovice; in 2018 it was confirmed there by the finding of several nests containing queens and males. Two other interesting species were L. meridionalis (Bondroit, 1920) and L. myops Forel, 1894, so far known from only few Czech localities.
Other species recorded that were only rarely found in Bohemia during the last ca. 70 years, are the social parasites Anergates atratulus (Schenck, 1852) and Strongylognathus testaceus (Schenck, 1852) found in nests of Tetramorium caespitum (Linnaeus, 1758). Relatively rare species also include Myrmica curvithorax Bondroit, 1920, M. gallienii Bondroit, 1920 and Lasius jensi Seifert, 1982.
We conclude that the ant fauna of the Dolní Pojizeří region is relatively rich, above all owing to presence of several unique steppic localities.