Taxonomy
The weaver ants belong to the ant genus Oecophylla (subfamily Formicinae) which contains two closely related living species: O. longinoda found in Sub-Saharan Africa and O. smaragdina found in southern India, southeast Asia, and Australia. They are provisionally placed in a tribe of their own, Oecophyllini. The weaver ant genus Oecophylla is relatively old, and 15 fossil species have been found from the Eocene to Miocene deposits. Polyrhachis and Dendromyrmex are two other genera of weaving ants that also use larval silk in nest construction, but the construction and architecture of their nests are simpler than those of Oecophylla. In Australia, Oecophylla smaragdina is found in the tropical coastal areas as far south as Rockhampton and across the coastal tropics of the Northern Territory down to Broome in West Australia.
The common features of the genus include an elongated first funicular segment, presence of propodeal lobes, helcium at midheight of abdominal segment 3 and gaster capable of reflexion over the mesosoma. Males have vestigial pretarsal claws.
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