Pheidole superba, Wilson, E. O., 2003

Wilson, E. O., 2003, Pheidole in the New World. A dominant, hyperdiverse ant genus., Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press : 762

publication ID

20017

DOI

https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6275601

persistent identifier

https://treatment.plazi.org/id/3DF0AE33-2705-341C-8FDD-F0AE12D0A51F

treatment provided by

Donat

scientific name

Pheidole superba
status

new species

Pheidole superba   HNS new species

Types Mus. Comp. Zool. Harvard.

Etymology L superba   HNS , splendid, superior, referring to the larger, strikingly dark, shiny body of major.

diagnosis Similar in various traits to amata   HNS , ambigua   HNS , celaena   HNS , fera   HNS , germaini   HNS , peruviana   HNS , rutilana   HNS , schwarzmaieri   HNS , and vomer   HNS , differing as follows.

Major: large, dark reddish to blackish brown; eye small; humerus prominently raised in dorsal-oblique view as a large equilateral triangle; in side view, venter of head strongly convex and dorsum weakly so, with the head as a whole tapering conspicuously to the occiput; in full-face view, head subrectangular, with deep occipital cleft; posterior half of dorsal head surface smooth and shiny, anterior half carinulate, with no rugoreticulum; lower half of mesopleuron, humeri, and parts of mesonotum and propodeal dorsa carinulate, rest of mesosoma smooth and shiny; propodeal spines long and slender; postpetiole from above elliptical, with angulate margins.

Minor: yellow; occiput only slightly narrowed but with nuchal collar; apex of petiolar node strongly and broadly convex; spines short and directed backward; head and body mostly smooth and shiny.

Measurements (mm) Holotype major: HW 1.84, HL 2.16, SL 0.86, EL 0.20, PW 0.84.

Paratype minor: HW 0.62, HL 0.66, SL 0.74, EL 0.10, PW 0.40.

Color Major: head dark reddish brown, rest of body blackish brown, appendages medium reddish brown. Minor: dark yellow.

Range Known from the type locality, as well as from Barro Colorado Island, Panama.

Biology The Barro Colorado series was collected form a bat roost (Diana E. Wheeler).

Figure Upper: holotype, major. Lower: paratype, minor. COLOMBIA: Pueblito, on southern boundary of Tayrona Park, 250 m (Charles Kugler). Scale bars = 1 mm.

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Arthropoda

Class

Insecta

Order

Hymenoptera

Family

Formicidae

Genus

Pheidole

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