Pheidole aurea

AntWiki: The Ants --- Online
Pheidole aurea
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hymenoptera
Family: Formicidae
Subfamily: Myrmicinae
Tribe: Attini
Genus: Pheidole
Species: P. aurea
Binomial name
Pheidole aurea
Wilson, 2003

Pheidole aurea casent0172956 profile 1.jpg

Pheidole aurea casent0172956 dorsal 1.jpg

Specimen Label

Nothing is known about the biology of aurea.

Identification

See the description in the nomenclature section.

Keys including this Species

Distribution

Only known from the type locality.

Latitudinal Distribution Pattern

Latitudinal Range: 30.9° to 20.2302194°.

   
North
Temperate
North
Subtropical
Tropical South
Subtropical
South
Temperate

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists

Nearctic Region: United States (type locality).

Distribution based on AntMaps

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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.

  • aurea. Pheidole aurea Wilson, 2003: 557, figs. (s.w.) U.S.A.

Unless otherwise noted the text for the remainder of this section is reported from the publication that includes the original description.

Description

DIAGNOSIS A member of the “bicarinata subgroup” of the larger pilifera group, which subgroup comprises Pheidole agricola, Pheidole aurea, Pheidole bajaensis, Pheidole barbata, Pheidole bicarinata, Pheidole centeotl, Pheidole cerebrosior, Pheidole defecta, Pheidole gilvescens, Pheidole macclendoni, Pheidole macrops, Pheidole marcidula, Pheidole paiute, Pheidole pinealis, Pheidole psammophila, Pheidole xerophila, Pheidole yaqui and Pheidole yucatana; and is characterized by the large to very large forward-set eyes of both castes; and in the major, the occipital lobes lacking any sculpturing (except in aurea); the posterior half of the head capsule almost entirely smooth and shiny; and the postpetiolar node seen from above oval, elliptical, or laterally angulate (rarely cornulate, never spinose). P. aurea in particular is distinguished by the following combination of traits.

Major: yellow; occiput with narrow band of transverse rugulae, which do not extend all the way across the occipital lobes; propodeal spines blunt, equilaterally triangular; humerus subangulate in dorsal-oblique view; postpetiolar node elliptical when seen from above.

Minor: clavate hairs present on promesonotal dorsum.

MEASUREMENTS (mm) Holotype major: HW 0.84, HL 0.92, SL 0.50, EL 0.20, PW 0.40. Paratype minor: HW 0.42, HL 0.48, SL 0.46, EL 0.12, PW 0.26.

COLOR Major: medium yellow, head slightly darker in shade than rest of body.

Minor: concolorous medium yellow.


Pheidole aurea Wilson 2003.jpg

Figure. Upper: holotype, major. Lower: paratype, minor. Scale bars = 1 mm.

Holotype Specimen Labels

Type Material

TEXAS: 5 km northwest of Eldorado, Schleicher Co., col. O. F. Francke. Museum of Comparative Zoology

Etymology

L aurea, gold, referring to the yellow color of both worker castes, and the type locality (El Dorado).

References

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

  • Dattilo W. et al. 2019. MEXICO ANTS: incidence and abundance along the Nearctic-Neotropical interface. Ecology https://doi.org/10.1002/ecy.2944
  • Wilson, E.O. 2003. Pheidole in the New World: A Dominant, Hyperdiverse Genus. Harvard University Press