Aphaenogaster mauritanica

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Aphaenogaster mauritanica
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hymenoptera
Family: Formicidae
Subfamily: Myrmicinae
Tribe: Attini
Genus: Aphaenogaster
Species group: gibbosa
Species: A. mauritanica
Binomial name
Aphaenogaster mauritanica
Dalla Torre, 1893

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Aphaenogaster mauritanica casent0904173 d 1 high.jpg

Specimen Labels

Synonyms

Identification

A member of the Aphaenogaster gibbosa-group.

Keys including this Species

Distribution

Schifani & Alicata (2023) - The Maghrebian populations of the pallida group hitherto considered to represent Aphaenogaster foreli should be attributed to Aphaenogaster dulcineae.

Latitudinal Distribution Pattern

Latitudinal Range: 35.789167° to 31.216667°.

   
North
Temperate
North
Subtropical
Tropical South
Subtropical
South
Temperate

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists

Palaearctic Region: Algeria, Morocco (type locality), Tunisia (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.

  • mauritanica. Aphaenogaster striola var. mauritanica Dalla Torre, 1893: 105.
    • [First available use of Aphaenogaster subterraneus r. striola var. mauritanicus Emery, 1891b: 8 (w.) TUNISIA; unavailable (infrasubspecific) name.]
    • Type-material: syntype workers (number not stated).
    • Type-localities: Algeria: Souk Ahras. (A. Forel), Algeria: Duvivier, 1600 m. (A. Forel).
    • Type-depository: MSNG (perhaps also MHNG).
    • Santschi, 1911i: 284 (m.); Santschi, 1932d: 342 (q.).
    • Combination in Aphaenogaster (Attomyrma): Emery, 1921f: 58.
    • As unavailable (infrasubspecific) name: Emery, 1908c: 334.
    • Subspecies of striola: Forel, 1894d: 28; Dalla Torre, 1893: 105.
    • Subspecies of gibbosa: Forel, 1907e: 15; Forel, 1909e: 377; Santschi, 1911i: 284; Karavaiev, 1912a: 5; Emery, 1921f: 58; Santschi, 1932d: 341; Santschi, 1936c: 200; Bernard, 1945: 131; Bolton, 1995b: 71.
    • Status as species: Cagniant, 1996a: 75; Cagniant, 2006a: 196; Borowiec, L. 2014: 14; Salata & Borowiec, 2018a: 14 (in key); Schifani & Alicata, 2023: 60.
    • Senior synonym of foreli: Schifani & Alicata, 2023: 60.
    • Senior synonym of homonyma: Schifani & Alicata, 2023: 60.
    • Distribution: Algeria, France, Morocco, Portugal, Spain, Tunisia.
  • foreli. Aphaenogaster foreli Cagniant, 1996a: 68, 74 (w.) ALGERIA.
    • Type-material: syntype workers (number not stated).
    • Type-locality: Algeria: Souk Ahras, and Duvivier (= Bouchegouf), iii.-iv.1889 (A. Forel).
    • [Note: Cagniant, 1996a: 74, nominated this taxon for specimens of striola subterraneoides Emery, sensu Forel, 1890: lxxi, misidentification. They are the same specimens that Emery, 1921f: 58, used for his name homonyma, which has priority; therefore foreli is automatically a junior synonym of homonyma.]
    • Type-depository: MHNG.
    • Status as species: Cagniant, 2006a: 196; Borowiec, L. 2014: 12.
    • Junior synonym of mauritanica: Schifani & Alicata, 2023: 60.
  • homonyma. Aphaenogaster (Attomyrma) gibbosa var. homonyma Emery, 1921f: 58 (w.) TUNISIA.
    • Type-material: syntype workers (number not stated).
    • Type-localities: Algeria: Souk Ahras, iii.-iv.1889 (A. Forel), Algeria: Duvivier (= Bouchegouf), iii.-iv.1889 (A. Forel).
    • [Note: the taxon homonyma is based on specimens of striola subterraneoides Emery, sensu Forel, 1890: lxxi, misidentification. They are the same specimens that Cagniant, 1996a: 74, used for his name foreli; therefore homonyma has priority and is automatically the senior synonym of foreli.]
    • Type-depository: MHNG.
    • Subspecies of gibbosa: Bolton, 1995b: 70; Salata & Borowiec, 2018a: 14 (in key).
    • Status as species (as foreli): Cagniant, 2006a: 196; Borowiec, L. 2014: 12.
    • Junior synonym of mauritanica: Schifani & Alicata, 2023: 60.

Description

References

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

  • Borowiec L. 2014. Catalogue of ants of Europe, the Mediterranean Basin and adjacent regions (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Genus (Wroclaw) 25(1-2): 1-340.
  • Cagniant H. 1996. Les Aphaenogaster du Maroc (Hymenoptera: Formicidae): clé et catalogue des espèces. Ann. Soc. Entomol. Fr. (N.S.) 32: 67-85.
  • Cagniant, H. "Liste actualisee des fourmis du Maroc (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)." Myrmecologische Nachrichten 8 (2006): 193-200.
  • Forel A. 1907. Formiciden aus dem Naturhistorischen Museum in Hamburg. II. Teil. Neueingänge seit 1900. Mitt. Naturhist. Mus. Hambg. 24: 1-20.
  • Forel A. 1909. Études myrmécologiques en 1909. Fourmis de Barbarie et de Ceylan. Nidification des Polyrhachis. Bull. Soc. Vaudoise Sci. Nat. 45: 369-407.
  • Forel, A. "Les Formicides de la Province d'Oran (Algérie)." Bulletin de la Société Vaudoise des Sciences Naturelles 30 (1894): 1-45.
  • IZIKO South Africa Museum Collection
  • Karavaiev V. 1912. Ameisen aus Tunesien und Algerien, nebst einigen unterwegs in Italien gesammelten Arten. Rus. Entomol. Obozr. 12: 1-22.
  • Salata S., and L. Borowiec. 2018. Redescription of Aphaenogaster muschtaidica Emery, 1908 with a key to gibbosa species group. Asian Myrmecology 10: e010002
  • Santschi, F. 1911. Formicides de diverses provenances. Annales de la Société Entomologique de Belgique 55: 278-287
  • Santschi, F. 1932. Etudes sur quelques Attomyrma paléarctiques. Mitteilungen der Schweizerischen Entomologischen Gesellschaft 15: 338-346.
  • Santschi, F. "Liste et descriptions de fourmis du Maroc." Bulletin de la Société des Sciences Naturalles du Maroc 16 (1936): 198-210.
  • Taheri A., J. Reyes-Lopez, and N. Bennas. 2014. Contribution a l'etude de la fauna myrmecologique du parc national de Talassemtane (nord du Maroc): biodiversite, biogeographie et especes indicatrices. Boletín de la Sociedad Entomológica Aragonesa (S.E.A.), 54: 225–236.