Pachysima, Emery

Wheeler, W. M., 1922, The ants collected by the American Museum Congo Expedition., Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 45, pp. 39-269 : 112-113

Pachysima Emery

Worker.-Closely related to Tetraponera but larger and more robust, with smaller eyes but distinct ocelli and the Frontal carina; decidedly longer and farther apart. Maxillary palpi 5-jointed; labial palpi 4-jointed. Both the petiole and postpetiole armed beneath with stout teeth. Claws toothed as in Tetraponera ,

Female.-Much like the worker. Wings very long, with venation like that of Tetraponera ; radial cell long and narrow.

Male.-Resembling the female and with very similar wings. Antennae 12- jointed; scapes only a little longer than the Second funicular joint; first funicular joint not swollen, much shorter than the second. Mesonotum without Mayrian furrows. Pro- and mesosterna not separated by a deep concavity. Petiole and postpetiole not dentate beneath. External genital valves large and stout, strongly geniculate, with inturncd points.

Larva without hooked dorsal hairs; the exudatoria on the three thoracic segments and first abdominal segment in the youngest stage (trophidium) long and digitiform.

This genus comprises only two known species and was originally described by Emery as a subgenus. It is confined to West Central Africa (Map 19), its limited range being due to the fact that it lives in the hollow stems of Barteria, a genus of plants confined to the area marked on the accompanying map.