Cataglyphis livida (André, 1881)

(Fig. 9 A–C)

Myrmecocystus albicans var. lividus André, 1881a: 58 (w.) Palestine. Palearctic.

Diagnosis. Worker. Body uniformly yellow, gaster usually darker; posterior margin of head with about three pairs of setae; propodeum and petiole with few erect setae; sides of mesonotum and propodeum with appressed silvery pubescence; cephalic surface superficially sculptured.

Material examined. Al Kharara-Seleiyn Road, 09.iv.2005, 24 ° 53 ’ N, 51 ° 10 ’ E, (M.S. Abdel-Dayem leg.), 2w, (KSMA) .

Geographic distribution. Cataglyphis lividaoccupies a broad geographic range through the Palearctic region ranging from Algeria and Egypt to Afghanistan (Radchenko, 1997 b); and extends north into Turkey and Bulgaria. It also has been reported from most countries of the Arabian Peninsula (Collingwood 1985, Tigar and Collingwood 1993, Collingwood and Agosti 1996, Tigar and Osborne 1999, Collingwood et al. 2011).

Ecological and biological notes. Cataglyphis livida is a common species at nature reserves in Riyadh Province (e.g. Rawdhat Khorim) where the population peaks in spring and in June (Sharaf et al. 2013). This species was found to be abundant foraging on Acacia gerrardii Benth. (Fabaceae) . This species is recorded for the first time from Qatar.