Aphaenogaster pallida

Aphaenogaster pallida
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Hymenoptera
Family:	Formicidae
Subfamily:	Myrmicinae
Tribe:	Attini
Genus:	Aphaenogaster
Species group:	pallida
Species:	A. pallida
Binomial name
Aphaenogaster pallida (Nylander, 1849) Specimen Labels
Synonyms
Aphaenogaster pallida laurenti Santschi, 1939 Aphaenogaster pallida leveillei Emery, 1881

Identification

A member of the Aphaenogaster pallida-group.

Aphaenogaster pallida and Aphaenogaster subterraneoides are very similar and differ only in the structure of propodeum. In A. pallida the propodeum is rounded, lacking propodeal spines, while in A. subterraneoides minute propodeal spines are present (Borowiec et al., 2019).

Keys including this Species

• Key to Aphaenogaster workers of Europe
• West European Aphaenogaster subterranea group species (queens and males)

Distribution

Latitudinal Distribution Pattern

Latitudinal Range: 43.513889° to 30.004722°.

North Temperate	North Subtropical	Tropical	South Subtropical	South Temperate

• Source: AntMaps

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists

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

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.

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.

Castes

Images from AntWeb

Syntype of Aphaenogaster pallida leveillei. Worker. Specimen code casent0904154. Photographer Z. Lieberman, uploaded by California Academy of Sciences.	Owned by MSNG, Genoa, Italy.

Nomenclature

The following information is derived from Barry Bolton's Online Catalogue of the Ants of the World.

• pallida. Myrmica pallida Nylander, 1849: 42 (w) ITALY (Sicily).
  • Type-material: syntype workers (number not stated).
  • [Note: Radchenko, 2007: 33, cites 2w syntypes ZMHF.]
  • Type-locality: Italy: Sicily I., E Messina (C. Zeller).
  • Type-depository: ZMHF.
  • Roger, 1859: 254 (q.m.).
  • Combination in Atta: Smith, F. 1858b: 163; Roger, 1859: 254;
  • combination in Aphaenogaster: Roger, 1863b: 29; Emery, 1908c: 328;
  • combination in Stenamma (Aphaenogaster): Emery, 1895c: 303;
  • combination in Aphaenogaster (Attomyrma): Santschi, 1919e: 245.
  • Status as species: Mayr, 1855: 414 (footnote); Smith, F. 1858b: 163; Roger, 1859: 254; Mayr, 1861: 66 (in key); Roger, 1863b: 29; Mayr, 1863: 396; Dours, 1873: 167; André, 1874: 195 (in key); Emery & Forel, 1879: 462; André, 1881b: 75; André, 1883b: 358 (in key); Emery, 1884a: 382 (footnote); André, 1885: 853; Forel, 1890a: lxxi; Emery, 1891b: 9; Dalla Torre, 1893: 103; Medina, 1893: 105; Forel, 1894d: 28; Emery, 1908c: 328; Emery, 1908d: 23; Karavaiev, 1912a: 5; Emery, 1916b: 130; Emery, 1921f: 59; Menozzi, 1921: 26; Müller, 1923b: 52; Kutter, 1927: 98; Finzi, 1930a: 152; Grandi, 1935: 99; Santschi, 1936c: 200; Santschi, 1939c: 5; Ceballos, 1956: 298; Bernard, 1959: 345; Baroni Urbani, 1964b: 29; Cagniant, 1964: 86; Cagniant, 1966b: 278; Bernard, 1967: 134 (redescription); Arnol’di, 1968: 1806; Cagniant, 1968a: 142; Cagniant, 1970a: 414; Baroni Urbani, 1971c: 52; Baroni Urbani, 1976: 209; Arnol'di, 1976b: 1023 (in key); Arnol'di & Dlussky, 1978: 536 (in key); Agosti & Collingwood, 1987b: 270 (in key); Mei, 1992a: 418; Bolton, 1995b: 71; Mei, 1995: 760; Poldi, et al. 1995: 3; Petrov, 2006: 91 (in key); Radchenko, 2007: 33; Lapeva-Gjonova, et al. 2010: 13; Tohmé, G. & Tohmé, 2014: 134; Borowiec, L. 2014: 16 (see note in bibliography); Lebas, et al. 2016: 260; Schifani & Alicata, 2023: 62.
  • Senior synonym of laurenti: Schifani & Alicata, 2023: 60.
  • Senior synonym of leveillei: Schifani & Alicata, 2023: 62.
  • Distribution: Algeria, France, Italy (+ Sicily), Morocco, Spain (Canary Is), Tunisia.
• laurenti. Aphaenogaster (Attomyrma) pallida var. laurenti Santschi, 1939d: 69 (w.q.) ALGERIA.
  • Type-material: 2 syntype workers, 4 syntype queens.
  • Type-localities: 1 worker, 4 queens Algeria: Trolard-Taza, nos 81, 85, 88 (A. Laurent), 1 (?) worker Algeria: Oran, Montas (Delassus).
  • Type-depository: NHMB.
  • Subspecies of pallida: Bolton, 1995b: 70.
  • Subspecies of leveillei: Cagniant, 1996a: 74.
  • Junior synonym of pallida: Schifani & Alicata, 2023: 62.
• leveillei. Aphaenogaster pallida r. leveillei Emery, 1881b: 534 (footnote) (w.) ALGERIA.
  • Type-material: holotype worker.
  • Type-locality: Algeria: Daya (E. Léveillé).
  • Type-depository: MSNG.
  • Emery, 1884a: 382 (m.); Emery, 1908c: 329 (q.).
  • Combination in Aphaenogaster (Attomyrma): Emery, 1921f: 59.
  • Subspecies of pallida: André, 1883b: 358; Emery, 1884a: 382 (footnote); André, 1885: 853; Saunders, E. 1890: 204; Dalla Torre, 1893: 103; Emery, 1908c: 329; Santschi, 1908: 518; Emery, 1921f: 59; Kutter, 1927: 98; Finzi, 1930a: 152; Ceballos, 1956: 298; Bolton, 1995b: 70.
  • Status as species: Cagniant, 1996a: 74; Cagniant, 2006a: 196; Borowiec, L. 2014: 14.
  • Junior synonym of pallida: Schifani & Alicata, 2023: 62.

References

• Baroni Urbani, C. 1971c. Catalogo delle specie di Formicidae d'Italia (Studi sulla mirmecofauna d'Italia X). Memorie della Societa Entomologica Italiana 50: 5-287 (page 52, see also)
• Borowiec, L. 2014. Catalogue of ants of Europe, the Mediterranean Basin and adjacent regions (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Genus (Wroclaw) 25(1-2): 1-340.
• Borowiec, L., Lapeva-Gjonova, A., Salata, S. 2019. Three Species of Aphaenogaster Mayr, 1853 (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) New to the Bulgarian Fauna. Acta Zoologica Bulgarica 71(4): 613-616.
• Dubovikoff, D.A., Yusupov, Z.M. 2017. Family Formicidae - Ants. In Belokobylskij S. A. and A. S. Lelej: Annotated catalogue of the Hymenoptera of Russia. Proceedingss of the Zoological Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences 6: 197-210.
• Emery, C. 1895d. Beiträge zur Kenntniss der nordamerikanischen Ameisenfauna. (Schluss). Zool. Jahrb. Abt. Syst. Geogr. Biol. Tiere 8: 257-360 (page 303, combination in Stenamma (Aphaenogaster))
• Emery, C. 1908d. Beiträge zur Monographie der Formiciden des paläarktischen Faunengebietes. (Hym.) (Fortsetzung.) III. Die mit Aphaenogaster verwandte Gattungengruppe. Dtsch. Entomol. Z. 1908: 305-338 (page 328, combination in Aphaenogaster)
• Heterick, B.E. 2022. A guide to the ants of Western Australia. Part II: Distribution and biology. Records of the Western Australian Museum, supplement 86: 247-510 (doi:10.18195/issn.0313-122x.86.2022.247-510).
• Lapeva-Gjonova, A., Antonova, V. 2022. An updated checklist of ants (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) of Bulgaria, after 130 years of research. Biodiversity Data Journal 10, e95599 (doi:10.3897/bdj.10.e95599).
• Nylander, W. 1849 [1848]. Additamentum alterum adnotationum in monographiam formicarum borealium. Acta Soc. Sci. Fenn. 3: 25-48 (page 42, worker described)
• Roger, J. 1859. Beiträge zur Kenntniss der Ameisenfauna der Mittelmeerländer. I. Berl. Entomol. Z. 3: 225-259 (page 254, queen, male described)
• Roger, J. 1863b. Verzeichniss der Formiciden-Gattungen und Arten. Berl. Entomol. Z. 7(B Beilage: 1-65 (page 29, combination in Aphaenogaster)
• Salata, S., Borowiec, L., Trichas, A. 2020. Review of ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) of Crete, with keys to species determination and zoogeographical remarks. Monographs of the Upper Silesian Museum No 12: 5–296 (doi:10.5281/ZENODO.3738001).
• Santschi, F. 1919e. Fourmis d'Espagne et des Canaries. Bol. R. Soc. Esp. Hist. Nat. 19: 241-248 (page 245, combination in Aphaenogaster (Attomyrma))
• Schär, S., Menchetti, M., Schifani, E., Hinojosa, J.C., Platania, L., Dapporto, L., Vila, R. 2020. Integrative biodiversity inventory of ants from a Sicilian archipelago reveals high diversity on young volcanic islands (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Organisms Diversity, Evolution 20, 405–416 (doi:10.1007/s13127-020-00442-3).
• Schifani, E., Alicata, A. 2023. Nomenclatural changes on some Mediterranean Aphaenogaster Mayr, 1853 taxa (Hymenoptera, Formicidae). Zootaxa, 5277(1), 59–70 (doi:10.11646/zootaxa.5277.1.2).
• Schifani, E., Alicata, A., Borowiec, L., García, F., Gentile, V., Gómez, K., Nalini, E., Rigato, F., Schär, S., Scupola, A., Vila, R., Menchetti, M. 2023. Unrecognized for centuries: distribution and sexual caste descriptions of the West European Aphaenogaster species of the subterranea group (Hymenoptera, Formicidae). ZooKeys 1153, 141–156 (doi:10.3897/zookeys.1153.98297).
• Schifani, E., Alicata, A., Menchetti, M., Borowiec, L., Fisher, B.L., Karaman, C., Kiran, K., Oueslati, W., Salata, S., Blatrix, R. 2022. Revisiting the morphological species groups of West-Palearctic Aphaenogaster ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) under a phylogenetic perspective: toward an evolutionary classification. Arthropod Systematics & Phylogeny 80, 627–648 (doi:10.3897/asp.80.e84428).
• Schifani, E., Costa, S., Mei, M., Alicata, A. 2021. A new species for the Italian fauna: Aphaenogaster strioloides, not A. crocea, inhabits Pantelleria Island (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Fragmenta Entomologica, Vol. 53 No. 1 2021) (doi:10.13133/2284-4880/482).
• Schifani, E., Scupola, A., Alicata, A. 2020. Morphology, ecology and biogeography of Myrmecina sicula André, 1882, rediscovered after 140 years (Hymenoptera, Formicidae). Biogeographia – The Journal of Integrative Biogeography 35, 105–116 (doi:10.21426/b635048444).
• Zięcina, D., Menchetti, M., Borowiec, L., Bračko, G., Lapeva-Gjonova, A., Vila, R., Salata, S. 2024. Taxonomic revision of the Aphaenogaster subterranea species group (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Annales Zoologici 74(2): 237-282 (doi:10.3161/00034541anz2024.74.2.002).

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

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