Tetramorium sericeiventre Emery, 1877

Sharaf, Mostafa R., Abdel-Dayem, Mahmoud S., Al Dhafer, Hathal M. & Aldawood, Abdulrahman S., 2013, The ants (Hymenoptera: formicidae) of Rawdhat Khorim Nature Preserve, Saudi Arabia, with description of a new species of the genus Tetramorium Mayr, Zootaxa 3709 (6), pp. 565-580 : 576-577

Tetramorium sericeiventre Emery, 1877

( Fig.6 h, i )

Tetramorium sericeiventre Emery, 1877:370 . This is the most common Tetramorium species found in the Arabian Peninsula ( Collingwood, 1985; Collingwood and Agosti, 1996; Collingwood et al. 2011) and is also broadly distributed in the savannah of tropical Africa. In Rawdhat Khorim, this species is very common and occurs during all months of the year, with a peak in December. It was observed foraging on C. procera .

In the key to Arabian species (Sharaf et al. 2012:7) T. saudicum will key to couplet 16 along with chefketi and syriacum. Couplet 16 is modified here to separate the three species.

16. Mesosomal pilosity restricted to pronotum and first half of mesonotum, propodeum bare; SL 0.78–0.87; petiolar and postpetiolar nodes coarsely sulcate ( Russia & Arabia)......................................................... chefketi

- Mesosoma with abundant, stout and relatively long suberect hairs; SL 0.70–0.77; petiolar and postpetiolar nodes irregularly sculptured (Middle East).......................................................................... syriacum

- Mesosomal pilosity fine and acute apically and restricted to mesonotum, propodeal dorsum with a single pair; SL 0.50–0.55; petiolar node clearly irregularly rugulose; postpetiolar node distinctly strongly longitudinally rugulose ( Saudi Arabia)............................................................................................... saudicum sp. n.

Figures

FIGURE 6. a, b, Solenopsis saudiensis (CASENT0249866, Saudi Arabia); c, d, Tetramorium chefketi (CASENT0906711, Bulgaria); e, f, g, Tetramorium saudicum sp. n. (CASENT0281582, Saudi Arabia); h, i, Tetramorium sericeiventre (CASENT0102388, Madagascar).