Editing Formica exsecta (section)

{{short description|Species of ant}}
{{Italic title}}
{{Speciesbox
| name = ''Formica exsecta''
| image = Formica exsecta casent0173161 profile 1.jpg
| genus = Formica
| species = exsecta
| authority = [[William Nylander (botanist)|Nylander]], 1846
}}

'''''Formica exsecta''''' (the '''narrow-headed ant''' or '''excised wood ant''') is a [[species]] of [[ant]] found from Western Europe to Asia.

A rare [[Formicinae|formicine]] ant with a deeply excised head, ''F. exsecta'' forms small mounds up to around a foot in height consisting of much finer material than that used by "true" [[wood ant]]s of the [[Formica rufa group|''F. rufa'' group]].

An interesting feature of ''F. exsecta'' is that it occurs in two distinct social forms: either a monogyne form where the colony has a single egg-laying queen, or a polygyne form where many egg-laying queens are part of the same colony.

''F. exsecta'' is placed in the ''Coptoformica'' subgenus within the [[genus]] and is closely related to ''[[Formica exsectoides]]'', an [[United States|American]] species. Both species may form vast colony networks. The largest known polydomous system of ''F. exsecta'' consists of 3,350 nests dispersed over about 22 ha in Transylvania, Romania.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Markó |first1=B. |display-authors=etal |title=The largest polydomous system of ''Formica'' ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in Europe discovered thus far in Romania |journal=North-Western Journal of Zoology |date=2012 |volume=8 |pages=287–291 |url=http://www.fileden.com/files/2008/1/6/1683128/Nwjz/vol8/nwjz.121125.Marko.pdf |access-date=2013-04-24 |archive-date=2015-01-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150120150252/http://www.fileden.com/files/2008/1/6/1683128/Nwjz/vol8/nwjz.121125.Marko.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Erős |first1=K. |display-authors=etal |title=Sharing versus monopolizing: distribution of aphid sources among nests within a ''Formica exsecta'' Nylander (Hymenoptera: formicidae) supercolony |journal=Israel Journal of Entomology |date=2009 |volume=39 |pages=105–127 |url=http://adatbank.transindex.ro/vendeg/htmlk/pdf8506.pdf |access-date=2013-04-24 |archive-date=2015-01-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150120155139/http://adatbank.transindex.ro/vendeg/htmlk/pdf8506.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>

In [[Great Britain]], ''F. exsecta'' can be found only in a few scattered [[heathland]] locations in [[South West England]] — principally [[Chudleigh Knighton Heath]] and nearby [[Bovey Heath]], which are both managed by the [[Devon Wildlife Trust]], and in the central [[Scottish Highlands]] (including [[Rannoch Moor]]).<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.ukbap.org.uk/UKPlans.aspx?ID=308 |title=UK Biodivesrity Action Plan |access-date=2008-07-06 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071108154206/http://www.ukbap.org.uk/UKPlans.aspx?ID=308 |archive-date=2007-11-08 |url-status=dead }}</ref>  A population centre previously existed in the [[New Forest]], and such eminent [[myrmecologist]]s as [[Horace Donisthorpe]] recorded this species there and in [[Parkhurst Forest]] on the [[Isle of Wight]] in the last century, but this seems to have declined considerably over the past few decades, and recent searches in such locations have failed to find any trace of colonies. The narrow-headed ant is currently one of the target species in the [[Back from the Brink (conservation programme)|Back from the Brink]] project, which aims to extend its range in England.<ref>{{cite web |title=Narrow-headed Ant |url=https://naturebftb.co.uk/the-projects/narrow-headed-ant/ |website=Back from the Brink |accessdate=23 August 2018 |archive-date=16 May 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240516204929/https://naturebftb.co.uk/projects/narrow-headed-ant/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

''F. exsecta'' has also been found in forests in [[Sweden]], [[Finland]], [[Germany]], [[Tibet]], and [[China]].