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bioRxiv · 10.64898/2026.10.08.757030

Genome assemblies and annotations of the poneroid ants Platythyrea mocquerysi (Ponerinae) and Stigmatomma oregonense (Amblyoponinae)

LeBoeuf, A. C.·Vizueta, J.·Xiong, Z.·Reitsema-Wang, Y.·Brown, A.·Rafanomezantsoa, J.-J.·Hugo, H.·Fisher, B. L.
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Abstract

We present draft genome assemblies for two poneroid ant species with distinctive life history traits: Platythyrea mocquerysi Emery, 1899 (Ponerinae) and Stigmatomma oregonense Wheeler, 1915 (Amblyoponinae). Platythyrea mocquerysi is a Malagasy ant in which larvae produce secretions from a ventral tubercle that are consumed by adults, representing an unusual form of larva-to-adult trophallaxis. Stigmatomma oregonense, a North American "dracula ant," feeds non-lethally on larval haemolymph. Using PacBio HiFi long-read sequencing, we assembled the P. mocquerysi genome (187 Mb, 307 scaffolds, N50 = 5.26 Mb, BUSCO 99.2% complete) and the S. oregonense genome (262 Mb, 1,189 scaffolds, N50 = 0.84 Mb, BUSCO 98.3% complete). These genomes encode 10,860 and 12,354 protein-coding genes, respectively. Repeat content is higher in S. oregonense than in P. mocquerysi, 54.3% against a lower bound of 15.7%. Most of the difference is in unclassified repeats, which we show to be diverged transposable elements. Comparative analysis with two additional poneroid genomes from closely related species reveals that genome size variation across poneroid ants is largely explained by transposable element dynamics, with notable expansions in several gene families including carboxylesterases, serine proteases, and lipid metabolism genes in Amblyoponinae. These genomes provide essential resources for investigating the molecular basis of unconventional brood management strategies in ants.

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LeBoeuf, A. C., Vizueta, J., Xiong, Z., Reitsema-Wang, Y., Brown, A., Rafanomezantsoa, J.-J., Hugo, H., Fisher, B. L.. 2026-10-11. Genome assemblies and annotations of the poneroid ants Platythyrea mocquerysi (Ponerinae) and Stigmatomma oregonense (Amblyoponinae). https://doi.org/10.64898/2026.10.08.757030

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