Pheidole nitella, Wilson, E. O., 2003

Wilson, E. O., 2003, Pheidole in the New World. A dominant, hyperdiverse ant genus., Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press : 473

Pheidole nitella new species

Types Mus. Comp. Zool. Harvard.

Etymology L nitella , bright, splendid.

Diagnosis Similar in various traits to the species listed in the heading above, and distinguished as follows. Major: yellow; head elongate; eyes set well forward, so that their distance from anterior of head is only a little less than Eye Length; propodeal spines reduced to obtuse angles; carinulae extend on head only slightly beyond eyes and are rudimentary on frontal lobes, and rest of body is entirely smooth and shiny.

Minor: eye very large, oval (not tapered), and set far forward on head; propodeum reduced to denticles; occiput broad and weakly concave.

Differs from the closely similar exquisita of Ecuador in size, head shape, and details of cephalic sculpture, eye shape, and minor scape length.

measurements (mm) Holotype major: HW 0.58, HL 0.66, SL 0.32, EL 0.10, PW 0.30. Paratype minor: HW 0.34, HL 0.34, SL 0.26, EL 0.06, PW 0.22. Color Major and minor: concolorous medium yellow.

Range Occurs on the Atlantic slope of Costa Rica at 300-1000 m (Longino 1997); Choco, Colombia, 760 m; and is widespread in montane and Amazonian Ecuador; a single collection originates from near Belem, Para, Brazil.

Biology A rainforest dweller, P. nitella nests in small cavities variously in dead and live wood, on the forest floor and in the low arboreal zone (Longino 1997; Stefan Cover and E. O. Wilson, unpublished notes). A seed cache was found in one nest at La Selva Biological Station, near Puerto Viejo, Costa Rica.

Figure Upper: holotype, major. Lower: paratype, minor. COSTA RICA: La Selva Biological Station, near Puerto Viejo, Heredia (Stefan Cover). Scale bars = 1 mm.