Liometopum imhoffii

Introduction

Liometopum imhoffii is an extinct ant species from the Miocene period, originally described from fossil specimens found in Radoboj, Croatia. These fossils date back approximately 11-16 million years ago. The species was originally described under different names (Formica imhoffii, Ponera affinis, and several Poneropsis species) before being consolidated under Liometopum by Dlussky and Putyatina in 2014 . Queens (gynes) measured 11.5-13.3mm in body length, while males were smaller at 8.5-9.5mm . This species represents a window into ant diversity during the Miocene epoch in Europe, when the climate was considerably warmer than today. As an extinct species, it cannot be kept in captivity - this caresheet exists purely as a natural history reference for ant enthusiasts interested in fossil species and the evolutionary history of the Dolichoderinae subfamily.