Camponotus aktaci

Camponotus aktaci
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Hymenoptera
Family:	Formicidae
Subfamily:	Formicinae
Tribe:	Camponotini
Genus:	Camponotus
Subgenus:	Myrmentoma
Species group:	kiesenwetteri
Species:	C. aktaci
Binomial name
	Camponotus aktaci; Karaman, C., 2013

A forest species preferring luminous deciduous forests, noted also from olive plantations, beaches with several large deciduous trees e.g. poplars, rarely collected on leaves of shrubs in gardens inside tourist resorts. Nests under stones or in soil on the slopes of clay-slate ravines. Most sites are from low altitude to 500 m, the highest confirmed location was from southern slope of Mt. Olympus, a single speciemns was found on limestones rock on mountain pasture at an altitude 1315 m but perhaps it was an individual transported to so high altitude by the wind. (Borowiec and Salata 2022)

Identification

Karaman and Aktaç (2013) - C. aktaci is similar in appearance to Camponotus libanicus but can be distinguished from the latter by the red mandibles, antennae, and legs, absence of erect hairs on the occipital corners and scape, scarce erect hairs on the mesosoma, petiole and gaster, and densely reticulate petiole that appears subopaque to dull. The new species is distinguished from Camponotus aegaeus by a bare scape, thicker petiole, and scarce erect hairs on the entire body.

Salata et al. (2019) - A member of the Camponotus kiesenwetteri species group. Head and mesosoma uniformly black, gaster and legs yellowish-brown; metanotal groove absent; propodeum without posterior protrusion; body densely punctate, appears dull; base of scape without extension; whole body bears short, thin, pale, sparse and erect setae, and short appressed microsetae; petiolar scale thick.

The mostly yellowish-brown gaster and legs and short and sparse setation of head, mesosoma and gaster distinctly separates this species from other taxa in the kiesenwetteri species group.

Keys including this Species

Distribution

Salata et al. (2019) - Turkey: Adana, Bingöl, Diyarbakır, Elazığ, Malatya, Muğla.

Niche modeling showed highly suitable areas matching the species known distribution in Eastern Anatolian deciduous forests and in the central Anatolian steppe region where there are no current occurrence records. The westernmost specimen record, from Muğla Province, is projected as an area of low habitat suitability. Temperature seasonality contributed most to the distribution model.

Latitudinal Distribution Pattern

Latitudinal Range: 38.71666667° to 37.03333333°.


North Temperate	North Subtropical	Tropical	South Subtropical	South Temperate

Source: AntMaps

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists

Palaearctic Region: Türkiye (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.

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.

Biology

C. aktaci was collected from the Pinus nigra Arnold forest and orchards of Prunus dulcis (Mill.) D.A. Webb between 1050 m and 1550 m altitude.

See the Camponotus kiesenwetteri species group page for information about the biology of C. aktaci.

Castes

Known only from the worker caste.

Worker

Salata et al. 2019. Figure 21-22. Camponotus aktaci major (17) and minor (18).

minor worker

Nomenclature

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

aktaci. Camponotus (Myrmentoma) aktaci Karaman, C. in Karaman, C. & Aktaç, 2013: 37, fig. 1 (s.w.) TURKEY.
- Type-material: holotype worker, 93 paratype major and minor workers.
- Type-locality: holotype Turkey: Adana-Pozanti-Akçatekir Village (37°21’N, 34°49’E), 1300 m., 30.vi.2001, 01/537 (N. Aktaç); paratypes: 14 workers with same data, 31 workers Turkey: Elaziğ-Sivrice-Gezin, 1256 m., 15.ix.2004, 04/355a, 04/356b, 04/360, 04/362b (H. Bolu).
- [Note: also listed as worker paratypes are many small collections (pp. 38, 42).]
- Type-depository: EMTU.
- Status as species: Borowiec, L. 2014: 25; Salata, Loss, et al. 2019: 90; Borowiec, L. & Salata, 2022: 70.
- Distribution: Turkey.

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

Description

Worker

Major. Head 1.03 times longer than wide, lateral sides of head narrowed in front of eyes; occiput convex behind eyes; scape 0.78 times head length and distinctly surpass occipital border, funiculus distinctly longer than scape; anterior margin of clypeus with a concave impression medially; mandibles with 5 black teeth, eyes situated on posterior half of head; mesosoma without metanotal groove, only metanotal suture present; anterior face of petiole rather convex, posterior face almost straight; whole head and mesosoma densely punctuated, dull; mandibles smooth, shiny; clypeus densely punctuated with mid-point more sculptured; petiole reticulate sculptured, appearing subopaque to dull; gaster weakly punctuate, dull; whole head with short appressed hairs, genae and sides of head with short, erect hairs; occipital corners without or with only 1–2 erect hairs; occiput with 5–6 erect hairs; scape bare; mandibles with subdedcumbent hairs; ventral surface of head with long, erect hairs; whole mesosoma with short, appressed pilosity; pronotum with 10–12, mesonotum with 8–10 long, erect hairs, anterior half of propodeum with short erect hairs; posterior half of propodeum with long, erect hairs; dorsum of petiole with 10–12 long, erect hairs; gaster with dense, appressed pilosity and with long, scarce, erect hairs; whole body black except reddish mandibles, scape, funiculus, and legs.

Minor. Head 1.16 times longer than wide, lateral sides of head narrowed in front of eyes; scape almost as long as head length; anterior face of petiole rather convex and posterior face slightly convex, rather thick, densely reticulate and weakly shiny; occipital corners bare; occiput with 2–4 long, erect hairs; pronotum with 4–8 short, erect hairs, and anterior part bare; mesonotum with 4–6 long, erect hairs; posterior half of propodeum with erect hairs; other features same as in the major worker.

Borowiec and Salata (2022) - Moderately large, polymorphic; minor worker: HL: 0.920-1.016 (mean 0.964); HW: 0.714-0.809 (mean 0.756); SL: 0.913-1.017 (mean 0.977); EL: 0.230-0.244 (mean 0.236); ML: 1.35-1.51; MW: 0.67-0.73. Color. Body completely black except yellowish explanate anterior margin of pronotum, pronotum never with reddish brown spots laterally, occasionally with yellowish-brown posterolateral corners; usually gena apically with very small yellowish to reddish spot, gaster sometimes brown; antennal scapus yellow, funicle usually with basal 1-3 segments yellowish then subsequent segments gradually darker; coxa brown to black, trochanters mostly brown, femora mostly brown to almost black except yellowish apices, tibiae occasionally yellow, usually yellowish brown to brown, tarsi yellowish to brown. Head. Stout, 1.2-1.3 times longer than wide, sides in front of eyes almost straight and slightly converging anterad, behind eyes regularly rounded, posterior margin convex. Clypeus trapezoidal, with anterior margin straight to slightly convex, simple or slightly crenulate, without median emargination, posterior margin in the middle emarginate by frontal triangle, whole surface with diffused microreticulation, appears shiny, covered with short and sparse appressed to decumbent hairs, anterior margin with a row of 6-8 long setae centrally and 4-8 short setae on sides, whole Clypeus with several moderately long erected setae grouping on sides and base of clypeus. Head diffusely to distinctly microsculptured, frontal area microreticulate, occipital and temporal area mostly with transverse or circular striation, surface with short and sparse appressed pubescence, appears shiny, gena, frontal and frons and anterior part of occipitum with short to long erected setae, only occipital and temporal areas without setae, ventral side of head with 0-4 moderately long to long erected setae. Scape moderately elongate, approximately 1.3 times as long as width of head, at apex only slightly wider than in base, basal part without horizontal extension, surface diffusely to distinctly microreticulate, shiny, with short and sparse appressed pubescence, without decumbent hairs or erected setae. Funicular segments elongate, thin, first segment 2.1 times as long as wide and 1.8 times as long as second segment, third segment distinctly longer than second, the rest of funicular segments distinctly longer than broad. Eyes moderately big, almost round, 0.24 length of head. Mandibles stout, diffusely microreticulate, surface shiny. Mesosoma. Moderately elongate, 1.9-2.1 times as long as wide, dorsally and laterally distinctly sculptured tending to form transverse, longitudinal, oblique and concentric striation, on sides of pronotum microstriation often diffused, whole surface shiny. In lateral view dorsum with shallow mesonotal groove, often dorsal profile almost linear with only indistinctly marked mesonotal groove, propodeum with flat dorsum approximately 1.5 times as long as wide, posterior margin truncate, in lateral view posterior face and dorsum form distinct angle posterior face not excavate. Surface of mesosoma with short and scarce depressed to decumbent hairs, pronotum posterolaterally with 2-6 long erected setae, mesonotum with 10-16 moderately long to long erected setae, propodeum on the whole surface with 12-22 short to moderately long erected setae; the number of erected setae increases with body length, the longest setae with length to 0.224. Waist and gaster. Petiolar scale thick, broad in anterior view, PI = 2.0-2.2, with very convex anterior and flat posterior face, apex rounded; anterior and posterior surface transversely striate, without pubescence or with few very short and very scarce appressed hairs, apical crest with 4-8 very long erected setae. Gaster shorter than mesosoma, tergites with fine transverse microstriation, surface shiny, covered with moderately long but scarce appressed hairs; each tergite with row of, very long erected setae across middle and close to posterior margin, occasionally with few additional erected setae between main rows. Legs. Elongate, hind femora shorter than mesosoma, surface of legs covered with short to moderately long and sparse appressed hairs, inner margin of hind tibiae with row of 2-3 thorns. Ventral surface of fore femora with 3-6 long erected setae. Major worker: Large, HL: 1.760-1.900 (mean 1.830); HW: 1.740-1.924 (mean 1.832); SL: 1.311-1.349 (mean 1.330); EL: 0.349-0.365 (mean 0.357); ML: 2.19-2.30; MW: 1.21- 1.33. Body color and sculpture as in minor workers but antennae darker , with scapus mostly brown, tarsi often as dark colored as tibiae. Head stouter, approximately as long as wide, sides of head softly convex, posterior margin straight. Anterior margin of clypeus slightly serrulate, in the middle with deep semicircular or triangular emargination. Scapus shorter, 0.7-0.8 times as long as width of head. Eyes relatively smaller, 0.20 times as long of head. Setation on head and whole dorsum more numerous than in minor workers, occipital and temporal part of head often with few erected setae, petiolar crest with 8-10 very long setae. Propodeal flat dorsum shorter, approximately 1.3 times as long as wide. Ventral posterior surface of fore femora with 6-10 long erected setae.

Type Material

Holotype – worker: Turkey, Adana-Pozantı-Akcatekir Village (37°21'N, 34°49'E), 1300 m asl., 30 June 2001: 01/537 (Leg. N. Aktac) (TU). Paratypes: 14 workers, from same nest with holotype.

Etymology

The species is names in honor of Prof. N. Aktac, C. Karaman’s dissertation advisor.

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.
Karaman C., and N. Aktaç. 2013. Descriptions of four new species of Camponotus Mayr (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), with a key for the worker caste of the Camponotus of Turkey. Journal of the Kansas Entomological Society 86(1): 36-56.
Salata S., A. C. Loss, C. Karaman, K. Kiran, and L. Borowiec. 2019. Review of the Camponotus kiesenwetteri group (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) in the Aegean with the description of a new species. ZooKeys 899: 85-107.