Formica rufa group

The Formica rufa group is a sub-generic group within the genus Formica, first proposed by William Morton Wheeler. This group contains the mound-building species of Formica commonly termed "wood ants" or "thatch-mound ants", which build prominent nests consisting of a mound of grass, litter or conifer needles. The species Formica rufa or the red wood ant is the type species of this sub group.