Ants of the «Formica picea—F. candida» complex are widespread across Eurasia. However, it is still a matter of debate if it constitutes one or two species. In this study, we collected a sample of specimens from different parts of Eurasia, sequenced the mitochondrial cox1 and cytb genes, as well as three nuclear loci—wg, Top1, and ITS2—and analyzed the available published data. We found this complex to contain a new, yet undescribed, taxon that has a large distribution in Siberia and East Asia. Thus, the «Formica picea—F. candida» complex consists of at least three taxa with distinct distributions.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.