Pheidole carrolli

Wilson, E. O., 2003, Pheidole in the New World. A dominant, hyperdiverse ant genus., Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press : 566

publication ID

20017

DOI

https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6274262

persistent identifier

https://treatment.plazi.org/id/091AE70A-B04D-5F86-B8A9-0A77397EA21F

treatment provided by

Donat

scientific name

Pheidole carrolli
status

 

Pheidole carrolli View in CoL   HNS Naves

Pheidole carrolli   HNS Naves 1985: 58.

types Florida State Collection of Arthropods; Mus. Comp. Zool. Harvard.

Etymology Named after James F. Carroll, collector of part of the type series.

diagnosis A member of the " pilifera   HNS complex" of the larger pilifera   HNS group; for a characterization of the complex, see under pilifera   HNS . Very close to pilifera   HNS itself (q.v.), and differing as follows. The only consistent distinction is the orange color of carrolli   HNS versus the browns, yellowish browns, and reddish browns of the highly variable, more northern distributed pilifera   HNS . In addition the major of carrolli   HNS has occiput and dorsal surface of postpetiole completely smooth, but this trait also occurs in some pilifera   HNS series.

Measurements (mm) Holotype major: HW 0.56, HL 1.82, SL 0.70, EL 0.24, PW 0.68.

Paratype minor: HW 0.52, HL 0.58, SL 0.54, EL 0.14, PW 0.32.

Color Major: "orange," i.e., concolorous brownish yellow with a slight reddish tinge.

Minor: concolorous yellowish brown, head a slightly darker shade of light brown.

Range Known from Alachua, Citrus, and Leon Counties in northern Florida.

Biology Naves (1985) found carrolli   HNS only in the shaded, sandy soil of tall oak or pine woodland. Subsequent collection by Stefan Cover and Lloyd Davis Jr. have securely identified carrolli   HNS as an early successional species that occurs in open, often disturbed habitats with sandy soil. Colonies are vigorous and consist of several hundred ants, including several dozen soldiers. Naves' collections may represent moribund colonies in poor nest sites, or colonies about to be eliminated by shading of formerly open habitats. The colonies are small, with only one or two majors present. According to Naves, no more than 15 minors forage at a time, and then singly and mostly at dusk and in the morning, for distances not exceeding 5 meters from the nest entrance. The entrance is difficult to spot and leads to exceptionally deep vertical galleries, in one case extending 1.7 m from the surface. A seedfilled granary chamber approximately 4 X 2 X 2 cm in size is present usually at a depth of 30 cm. The minor workers are exceptionally sluggish, and show the unusual, perhaps unique habit for Pheidole   HNS of feigning death when disturbed, often curling themselves around particles of soil in a way that makes them even more difficult to see.

Figure Upper: holotype, major. Lower: paratype, minor. FLORIDA: Gainesville, Alachua Co. (Marcio A. Naves). Scale bars = 1 mm.

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Arthropoda

Class

Insecta

Order

Hymenoptera

Family

Formicidae

Genus

Pheidole

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