Lepisiota elbazi Sharaf & Hita Garcia, 2020
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publication ID |
https://dx.doi.org/10.3897/jhr.76.50193 |
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publication LSID |
lsid:zoobank.org:pub:4D85CF52-8E50-4D9D-A0E1-38F5E26B6561 |
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persistent identifier |
https://treatment.plazi.org/id/218E57C6-A0CA-4C9D-B4E3-EC9EBF831AEC |
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taxon LSID |
lsid:zoobank.org:act:218E57C6-A0CA-4C9D-B4E3-EC9EBF831AEC |
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treatment provided by |
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scientific name |
Lepisiota elbazi Sharaf & Hita Garcia |
| status |
sp. nov. |
Lepisiota elbazi Sharaf & Hita Garcia sp. nov.
Figs 1A, D View Figure 1 , 6A-C View Figure 6
Type material.
Holotype: pinned worker from Oman: Dhofar: Ayn Razat, 17.12443N, 54.23832E, 98 m, 20.xi.2017, CASENT0872069, SF, (M. R. Sharaf). Paratype: one pinned worker with same data as holotype, CASENT0922860, (King Saud University Museum of Arthropods (KSMA), Plant Protection Department, College of Food and Agriculture Sciences, King Saud University, Riyadh, KSA).
Holotype worker.
Measurements (paratype in parentheses): EL 0.17 (0.20); HL 0.82 (0.87); HW 0.57 (0.62); ML 0.50 (0.57); PH 0.30 (0.32); PRW 0.45 (0.50); PSL 0.12 (0.15); SL 1.07 (1.15); TL 3.20 (3.50); WL 1.40 (1.50). Indices: CI 70 (71); OI 30 (32); PSLI 15 (17); SI 188 (185).
Diagnosis.
This new species can be distinguished from its regional congeners by the following combination of characters: in profile, posterior margin of head anteroposteriorly compressed; limited number of hair pairs on body: two pairs on posterior margin of head, two to three pairs on promesonotum, and one to two pairs on first gastral tergite.
Description.
Worker. Head. Elongate, distinctly more than 1.3-1.6 × longer than broad, with straight posterior margin and feebly convex lateral margins; posterior margin of head, in profile, anteroposteriorly compressed; antennal scapes when laid back from their insertions surpassing posterior margin of head by more than one third of length (SI 185-188); eyes of moderate size (OI 30-32), with the anteriormost point of the eye lies touching the midlength of head in full-face view; anterior clypeal margin strongly convex anteriorly and dorsally, and with raised lateral margins; frontal triangle opened posteriorly; masticatory margin of mandibles armed with four teeth, the first tooth being longest, the third being smallest, the second and fourth teeth are of moderate size and subequal (counting from apex). Mesosoma. Promesonotum convex in profile; first half of mesonotal outline descending posteriorly into a concave curve then elevated and descending posteriorly in a straight line to an impressed metanotal groove; propodeal spines long and acute in profile (PSLI 15-17), propodeal spines in profile rising slightly to the rear from the level of the propodeal dorsum. Petiole. Acutely dorsally bispinose. Pilosity. First two-thirds of scape without hairs, distal quarter with a few stiff hairs, funiculus with dense appressed pubescence; cephalic dorsum with several pairs of stiff, black, long, blunt hairs (hair length 0.10-0.12) arranged as follow: two on anterior clypeal margin, one on posterior clypeal margin, one at end of frontal carinae; one close to level of anterior margins of eyes; one behind level of mid-length of eyes; two at posterior margin of head; promesonotum with one to three pairs of hairs; mandibular surfaces with fine long pale hairs; gaster with several scattered hairs. Sculpture. Cephalic, clypeal surfaces, and promesonotal dorsum faintly but finely reticulate-rugulose, moderately shiny, mandibular surface smooth and shining; mesonotum, propodeum, and petiole distinctly reticulate-punctate; first gastral tergite smooth and shining. Color. Bicolored species, head, mesosoma, petiole yellow or red-yellow, distal end of scapes, first funicular segment and mandibular teeth darker; gaster mostly dark brown to black with first tergite of slightly lighter brown.
Etymology.
The patronymic name honors Prof. Farouk El-Baz, the Egyptian space scientist, Boston University, USA in recognition of his distinguished scientific achievements.
Remarks.
The occurrence of hairs and their distribution on the surface of the body are diagnostic characters for the recognition of species in many ant genera, notably used in the taxonomy of the genus Lepisiota ( Collingwood 1985; Collingwood and Agosti 1996). Lepisiota elbazi is not similar to any of the known Arabian Lepisiota , except the Arabian endemic species L. arabica (Collingwood, 1985) described from the southwestern Asir Mountains, KSA. Both species are bicolored and have a compressed posterior margin of the head when seen in profile, acute and long propodeal spines, stiff and blunt hairs, impressed metanotal groove, characteristically paler first gastral tergite and similar body sculpture. The compressed profile of the posterior margin of the head sets the two species apart from any of the Arabian Lepisiota , as those all have a rounded profile to the posterior margin of the head.
The two species can be separated by the number of body hairs and dimensions. Lepisiota elbazi has fewer hairs on the posterior margin of the head (two pairs), on the mesosoma (two to three pairs on promesonotum), and on the first gastral tergite (one to two pairs). Lepisiota arabica has more than seven pairs of hairs on the posterior margin of the head, many pairs scattered on the mesosomal dorsum (six pairs on promesonotum, four pairs on mesonotum, and two pairs on the propodeal dorsum), and several pairs on the first gastral tergite. Additionally, L. elbazi has a greater head length (HL 0.82-0.87 vs. HL 0.72-0.77 in L. arabica ), longer scapes (SL 1.07-1.15, SI 185-188 vs. SL 0.87-0.89, SI 155-159), and relatively longer head (HL 0.82-0.87 vs. HL 0.73-0.75).
Ecological and biological notes.
Both workers of the new species were collected at Ayn Razat (Fig. 7 View Figure 7 ) and were foraging in leaf litter covering dry soil under an Acacia tree.
Geographic range.
Oman.
Queen and male.
Not known.
No known copyright restrictions apply. See Agosti, D., Egloff, W., 2009. Taxonomic information exchange and copyright: the Plazi approach. BMC Research Notes 2009, 2:53 for further explanation.