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.