Data from: Assessment of the ant fauna in the forests of Penang Hill, Pulau Pinang, Malaysia

A total of 105 ant species from 54 genera and 10 subfamilies have been identified from the collections made during the 2017 assessment of ants of Penang Hill, Malaysia. Additional work is ongoing to process and identify the remaining samples, which will undoubtedly raise the total number of species. Our data add to a growing dataset on the ant fauna of peninsular Malaysia. Ants play important roles as predators, scavengers, and seed dispersers in tropical forests. Baseline data on ants may provide more granular information on differences between habitats within the peninsular Malaysia, and may help identify areas of high diversity and endemism within the region.

本次研究基于马来西亚槟城山2017年蚂蚁调查采集的标本，已鉴定出隶属于10亚科、54属的105种蚂蚁。目前剩余标本的处理与鉴定工作仍在进行中，该工作无疑将进一步提升本次记录的物种总数。本研究数据丰富了马来半岛蚂蚁区系的现有数据集。蚂蚁在热带森林生态系统中作为捕食者、食腐者与种子传播者发挥着重要生态功能。针对蚂蚁的本底调查数据可为马来半岛不同生境间的差异提供更为精细的信息，同时有助于识别该区域内生物多样性及特有性水平较高的区域。