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Lepisiota lunaris
| Lepisiota lunaris | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Hymenoptera |
| Family: | Formicidae |
| Subfamily: | Formicinae |
| Tribe: | Plagiolepidini |
| Genus: | Lepisiota |
| Species: | L. lunaris |
| Binomial name | |
| Lepisiota lunaris (Emery, 1893) | |
This species seems to be widespread across India, although infrequent in the collections. The specimens were collected both in forest and non-forest habitats, mainly by hand collecting from the dry soil and honey baits. (Wachkoo et al., 2021)
Identification
This small to medium-sized species is similar to many workers of the medium sized Lepisiota mayri but the erect setae on the body are distinctly sparse, whereas the latter species is covered with abundant erect setae and very hairy overall (Wachkoo et al., 2021).
Keys including this Species
Distribution
India (Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir), Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka (Thapa 2000; Bharti et al. 2016; Rasheed et al. 2019; Dias et al. 2020; Wachkoo et al. 2021).
Latitudinal Distribution Pattern
Latitudinal Range: 32.4443° to 31.6591°.
| North Temperate |
North Subtropical |
Tropical | South Subtropical |
South Temperate |
- Source: AntMaps
Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists
Oriental Region: India, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka (type locality).
Distribution based on AntMaps
Distribution based on AntWeb specimens
Check data from AntWeb
Countries Occupied
| Number of countries occupied by this species based on AntWiki Regional Taxon Lists. In general, fewer countries occupied indicates a narrower range, while more countries indicates a more widespread species. |
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Estimated Abundance
| Relative abundance based on number of AntMaps records per species (this species within the purple bar). Fewer records (to the left) indicates a less abundant/encountered species while more records (to the right) indicates more abundant/encountered species. |
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Biology
Castes
Nomenclature
The following information is derived from Barry Bolton's Online Catalogue of the Ants of the World.
- lunaris. Acantholepis lunaris Emery, 1893f: 250, pl. 6, fig. 12 (w.) SRI LANKA.
- [Misspelled as lunaria by Chapman & Capco, 1951: 209.]
- Imai, et al. 1984: 9 (k.).
- Combination in Lepisiota: Bolton, 1995b: 228.
- Subspecies of capensis: Forel, 1895e: 458; Forel, 1906b: 86; Forel, 1909e: 395; Emery, 1925b: 24; Menozzi, 1939a: 312; Chapman & Capco, 1951: 209; Bolton, 1995b: 228.
- Status as species: Collingwood, 1970: 379.
Description
Worker
Wachkoo et al. (2021): Head subquadrate; slightly longer than wide, wider posteriorly than in front; lateral and posterior margins convex, posterolateral corners rounded; clypeus subcarinate in the middle; anterior clypeal margin complete and convex; eyes broadly oval, weakly convex, placed at the middle-line of head, covering one-third of lateral cephalic margin; three small ocelli present; antennal scape surpassing posterior head margin by about onethird its length. In lateral view promesonotum convex, metanotum low, almost straight; mesometanotum demarcated; metanotal area long and constricted; propodeum armed with a pair of posteriorly diverging thick blunt spines; propodeal declivity steep. Petiole upright, with angular sides, dorsally emarginate, armed with a pair of almost straight spines pointing upward.
Head and mesosoma feebly shiny to subopaque; gaster polished, smooth and shiny; overall head and mesosomal dorsum weakly microreticulate; propleuron shiny; mesonotum and lateral mesosoma longitudinally striate; declivous face transversally striate. Body covered with short, erect, abundant setae on head and gaster, sparser on mesosoma; pubescence very fine and sparse, most visible on head; almost absent on mesosoma and gaster; antennal funiculus with sparse appressed to decumbent pubescence. Black; antenna, mandible and tarsi light brown
Measurements (n = 9): HL 0.56–0.63; HW 0.51– 0.57; EL 0.17–0.19; SL 0.62–0.66; PnW 0.34–0.42; ML 0.74–0.86; PFL 0.48–0.53; PFW 0.12–0.14 mm. Indices: CI 89–91; SI 111–123; REL 29–31 .
References
- Bolton, B. 1995b. A new general catalogue of the ants of the world. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 504 pp. (page 228, Combination in Lepisiota)
- Collingwood, C.A. 1970. Formicidae from Nepal. Khumba Himal. Ergebnisse des Forschungsunternehmens Nepal Himalaya 3: 371-387.
- Emery, C. 1893h. Voyage de M. E. Simon à l'île de Ceylan (janvier-février 1892). Formicides. Ann. Soc. Entomol. Fr. 62: 239-258 (page 250, pl. 6, fig. 12 worker described)
- Forel, A. 1895f. Les Formicides de l'Empire des Indes et de Ceylan. Part V. J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 9: 453-472 (page 458, Race/subspecies of capensis)
- Forel, A. 1906b. Les fourmis de l'Himalaya. Bull. Soc. Vaudoise Sci. Nat. 42: 79-94 (page 86, Race/subspecies of capensis)
- Forel, A. 1909k. Études myrmécologiques en 1909. Fourmis de Barbarie et de Ceylan. Nidification des Polyrhachis. Bull. Soc. Vaudoise Sci. Nat. 45: 369-407 (page 395, Race/subspecies of capensis)
- Harshana, A., Dey, D. 2022. Taxonomic studies on the ant genus Lepisiota Santschi 1926 (Hymenoptera: Formicidae: Formicinae) in India, with description of four new species. Oriental Insects 1–34 (doi:10.1080/00305316.2022.2125096).
- Imai, H. T.; Baroni Urbani, C.; Kubota, M.; Sharma, G. P.; Narasimhanna, M. H.; Das, B. C.; 1984. Karyological survey of Indian ants. Jpn. J. Genet. 59: 1-32 (page 9, karyotype described)
- Jarernkong, K., Kongmee, M., Pinkaew, N., Jaitrong, W. 2023. Three new species of the ant genus Lepisiota Santschi, 1926 (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) from Thailand. Far Eastern Entomologist 468, 1–15 (doi:10.25221/fee.468.1).
- Rasheed, M.T., Bodlah, I., Fareen, A.G., Wachkoo, A.A., Huang, X., Akbar, S.A. 2019. A checklist of ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in Pakistan. Sociobiology 66(3), 426-439 (doi:10.13102/sociobiology.v66i3.4330).
- Subedi, I.P., Budha, P.B., Bharti, H., Alonso, L. 2020. An updated checklist of Nepalese ants (Hymenoptera, Formicidae). ZooKeys 1006, 99–136 (doi:10.3897/zookeys.1006.58808).
- Wachkoo, A.A., Bharti, H., Akbar, S.A. 2021. Taxonomic review of the ant genus Lepisiota Santschi, 1926 (Hymenoptera: Formicidae: Formicinae) from India. Bonn Zoological Bulletin 70(2): 227–245 (doi:10.20363/BZB-2021.70.2.227).
References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics
- Chapman, J. W., and Capco, S. R. 1951. Check list of the ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) of Asia. Monogr. Inst. Sci. Technol. Manila 1: 1-327
- Collingwood C.A. 1970. Formicidae (Hymenopter: Aculeata) of Nepal. Himalaya Khumbu Himal, 3: 371-388.
- Emery C. 1893. Voyage de M. E. Simon à l'île de Ceylan (janvier-février 1892). Formicides. Annales de la Société Entomologique de France 62: 239-258.
- Forel A. 1909. Études myrmécologiques en 1909. Fourmis de Barbarie et de Ceylan. Nidification des Polyrhachis. Bull. Soc. Vaudoise Sci. Nat. 45: 369-407.
- Menozzi C. 1939. Formiche dell'Himalaya e del Karakorum raccolte dalla Spedizione italiana comandata da S. A. R. il Duca di Spoleto (1929). Atti della Società Italiana di Scienze Naturali e del Museo Civico di Storia Naturale di Milano. 78: 285-345.
- Rasheed M. T., I. Bodlah, A. G. Fareen, A. A. Wachkoo, X. Huang, and S. A. Akbar. 2019. A checklist of ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in Pakistan. Sociobiology 66(3): 426-439.
- Thapa V. K. 2000. An Inventory of Nepal's Insects, Vol. III. IUCN Nepal, Kathmandu, xi + 475 pp.