Pachycondyla sennaarensis

Collingwood, C. A., Pohl, F., Güsten, R., Wranik, W., van Harten, A., 2004, The ants (Insecta: Hymenoptera: Formicidae) of the Socotra Archipelago, Fauna of Arabia 20, pp. 473-495 : 478

publication ID	https://doi.org/ 0.5281/zenodo.12560
DOI	https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6269260
persistent identifier	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/A7F6BD94-159F-F0BB-5095-E698BE46DB92
treatment provided by	Donat
scientific name	Pachycondyla sennaarensis
status

Treatment

Pachycondyla sennaarensis View in CoL (Mayr, 1862) Fig. 2

Ponera sennaarensis Mayr, 1862 . - Verh. Zool.-Bot. Ges. Wien 12: 721. (Sudan).

Pachycondyla sennaarensis . - COLLINGWOOD 1985: 254; COLLINGWOOD & VAN HARTEN 1994: 39.

Specimens examined: Yemen, Socotra Island:spms from Adho Dimello , IV.1967, K.M. Guichard, NHMB ; spms from Hadibo, 13-14.IV.1993, A. van Harten, CCC ; spms from Hadibo, 17.IX.1998, W Wranik, CWWR ; spms from Di Lisheh , 05.X.1998, A. van Harten, CCC ; 7 ☿☿, Adho Dimello, base camp, 12°34'N 54°02'E, 940 m, 03.II.1999, H. Pohl, HLMD-Hym-2063 , NHCY GoogleMaps ; 6 ☿☿, 1 9, coast road east of Hadibo, coastal sand dunes , 12°36'N 54°21'E, 04-06.II.1999, H. Pohl, HLMD-Hym-2064 , NHCY GoogleMaps ; 2 ☿☿, Hoq, coast plain near cave , 12°36'N 54°21'E, 50-320 m, 05-06.II.1999, H. Pohl, HLMD-Hym-2065 , NHCY ("hosts of Pselaphidae ") GoogleMaps ; 15 ☿☿, Diksam Plateau , 12°32'N 53°59E, 1020 m, pitfall trap, 22-24.II. 1999, H. Pohl, HLMD-Hym-2067 , NHCY ; spms from Diksam , 22.II. 1999, W. Wranik, CWWR ; spms from Farmihin , 23.II.1999, W. Wranik, CWWR ; spms from Hadibo , 15.II.2000, W. Wranik, CWWR ; spms from Nojid, waterfall area , 16.II.2000, W. Wranik, CWWR ; 2 ☿☿, Goeeh , 12°32'N 54°10'E, 240 m, 23.X.2000, A. van Harten, HLMD-Hym-2068 , NHCY GoogleMaps ; 7 ☿☿, Dijoub, around cave, 12°23N 54°01'E, 90 m, 24.X.2000, H. Pohl, HLMD-Hym-2069 , NHCY . - Yemen, Samha Island:spms from coastal area , 15.II.1999, W. Wranik, CWWR . - Yemen, Abd al-Kuri Island:spms from coastal plain , 18.II.1999, W. Wranik, CWWR ; 15 ☿☿, 1 pupa, west coast, 12°10'N 53°15E, above 200 m, 18.II.1999, H. Pohl, HLMD-Hym-2066 , NHCY .

Remarks: This ponerine ant is widely distributed throughout sub-Saharan Africa, where it inhabits savannas and open forests; it is also the most common member of the subfamily in southern Arabia. While it is regarded as native at least throughout Africa, it is also notably preferring man-impacted habitats, such as human settlements, rubbish dumps and waste ground. Thus it is in question whether the species is indigenous to the Socotra Archipelago. It is a general scavenger but will attack other insects and has a painful sting. Allergic reactions to the sting, sometimes severe, are a problem locally in Arabia (Dib 1992, Rizk et al. 1998), where it is called the "Samsun ant". Probably because of awareness of the painful sting, Socotri people refer to this ant by a specific denomination ( “dfftim”), as different to the word for ant ( “nimihil”).