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Camponotus mina
| Camponotus mina | |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Hymenoptera |
| Family: | Formicidae |
| Subfamily: | Formicinae |
| Tribe: | Camponotini |
| Genus: | Camponotus |
| Species: | C. mina |
| Binomial name | |
| Camponotus mina Forel, 1879
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| Synonyms | |
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Mackay and Mackay (2002) - An inhabitant of mesquite dominated desert. This species was present in the Chihuahuan Desert from at least 40,000 years ago until nearly recent time (Mackay and Elias, 1992). Specimens often nest in mesquite shrubs (Prosopis glandulosa).
Identification
The major of this species can be recognized as it has abundant erect hairs on most surfaces, nearly all with blunt tips, some are nearly spatulate, these hairs cover the head, several similar hairs are found on the scapes, longer erect hairs are present on the mesosoma, as well as on the gaster. The appressed pubescence is sparse. The anterior border of the clypeus is concave, the ant is black with reddish-brown or brown mandibles, antennae, and the tibiae. The minor is similar, except the hairs are finer. The region posterior to the eye and the pronotal shoulder are swollen. (Mackay and Mackay 2002)
Distribution
United States. Arizona, Texas and New Mexico. Mexico. Baja California, Chihuahua, Sonora.
Latitudinal Distribution Pattern
Latitudinal Range: 47.390014° to 18.67576111°.
| North Temperate |
North Subtropical |
Tropical | South Subtropical |
South Temperate |
- Source: AntMaps
Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists
Nearctic Region: United States.
Neotropical Region: Mexico (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
Wheeler (1910) described a subsequently synonymized variety, zuni, from specimens he collected "on the bark of old mesquite (Prosopis velutina) trees at Tucson, Arizona."
Vanoye-Eligio et al. (2020) provide the following notes based on collections using Multilure-type traps from northeastern Mexico: A minor and major of Camponotus mina were recorded. This ant usually nests in mesquite bushes (Prosopis glandulosa Torr.; Fabaceae).
Castes
Worker
   
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| Worker. Photographer Gary Alpert. | Owned by Museum of Comparative Zoology. |
Images from AntWeb
   
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| Worker. Specimen code casent0104950. Photographer April Nobile, uploaded by California Academy of Sciences. | Owned by UCDC, Davis, CA, USA. |
   
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| Syntype of Camponotus erythropus. Worker. Specimen code castype00595. Photographer April Nobile, uploaded by California Academy of Sciences. | Owned by CAS, San Francisco, CA, USA. |
   
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| Syntype of Camponotus erythropus. Worker. Specimen code castype00596. Photographer April Nobile, uploaded by California Academy of Sciences. | Owned by CAS, San Francisco, CA, USA. |
   
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| Syntype of Camponotus erythropus. Worker. Specimen code castype00597. Photographer April Nobile, uploaded by California Academy of Sciences. | Owned by CAS, San Francisco, CA, USA. |
Queen
   
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| Queen. . | Owned by Museum of Comparative Zoology. |
Images from AntWeb
   
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| Queen (alate/dealate). Specimen code casent0104759. Photographer April Nobile, uploaded by California Academy of Sciences. | Owned by UCDC, Davis, CA, USA. |
Nomenclature
The following information is derived from Barry Bolton's Online Catalogue of the Ants of the World.
- mina. Camponotus mina Forel, 1879a: 83 (s.) MEXICO (Baja California).
- Type-material: holotype major worker.
- Type-locality: Mexico: Baja California, Cape St Lucas (no collector’s name) (ex coll. H. de Saussure).
- Type-depository: MHNG.
- Creighton, 1965b: 6 (w.q.m.).
- Combination in C. (Myrmobrachys): Forel, 1914a: 270.
- Subspecies of senex: Emery, 1896d: 377 (in list).
- Status as species: Cresson, 1887: 255; Dalla Torre, 1893: 243; Emery, 1893i: 681; Forel, 1899c: 151; Forel, 1901c: 136; Wheeler, W.M. 1910d: 346; Wheeler, W.M. 1910g: 572; Wheeler, W.M. 1917a: 562; Emery, 1925b: 164; Creighton, 1950a: 399; Creighton, 1965b: 5 (redescription); Kempf, 1972a: 52; Hunt & Snelling, 1975: 22; Smith, D.R. 1979: 1434; Bolton, 1995b: 111; Mackay & Mackay, 2002: 294.
- Senior synonym of erythropus: Emery, 1895c: 336; Emery, 1896d: 377; Forel, 1899c: 151; Kempf, 1972a: 52; Smith, D.R. 1979: 1434; Bolton, 1995b: 111.
- Senior synonym of zuni: Creighton, 1965b: 3; Smith, D.R. 1979: 1434; Bolton, 1995b: 111.
- Distribution: Mexico, U.S.A.
- erythropus. Camponotus erythropus Pergande, 1893: 28 (s.w.) MEXICO (Baja California).
- Type-material: syntype major and minor workers (numbers not stated, “many”).
- Type-localities: Mexico: Baja California, San Esteban, San Jorge, El Paraiso, San Julio, San José de Gracias, and San José del Cabo (G. Eisen & C.D. Haines).
- Type-depository: USNM (perhaps also CASC, MCZC).
- Junior synonym of mina: Emery, 1895c: 336; Emery, 1896d: 377; Forel, 1899c: 151; Kempf, 1972a: 52; Smith, D.R. 1979: 1434; Bolton, 1995b: 98.
- zuni. Camponotus mina subsp. zuni Wheeler, W.M. 1910d: 346 (s.w.) U.S.A. (Arizona).
- Type-material: syntype major and minor workers (numbers not stated, “numerous”).
- Type-locality: U.S.A.: Arizona, Tucson (W.M. Wheeler).
- Type-depositories: AMNH, MCZC, USNM.
- Combination in C. (Myrmobrachys): Wheeler, W.M. 1917a: 562.
- Subspecies of mina: Wheeler, W.M. 1917a: 562; Emery, 1925b: 164; Cole, 1937b: 139; Creighton, 1950a: 399; Smith, M.R. 1951a: 847.
- Junior synonym of mina: Creighton, 1965b: 5; Smith, D.R. 1979: 1434; Bolton, 1995b: 130.
Unless otherwise noted the text for the remainder of this section is reported from the publication that includes the original description.
Description
Worker
Wheeler (1910), as for synonymized mina zuni – Major Length, 6.5-7 mm.
Head rather small, subrectangular, a little longer than broad and a little broader behind than in front, with slightly excised posterior, and feebly convex lateral borders. Eyes rather large, slightly convex. Mandibles 5-toothed, with convex external borders and upper surfaces. Clypeus distinctly carinate, very slightly produced anteriorly as a broadly rounded lobe, with a faint median sinus. Frontal area distinct, triangular, as long as broad. Frontal carinae strongly lyrate, approximated anteriorly, twice as far apart behind as in front. Frontal groove distinct. Antennae short; scapes slender and terete at the base, somewhat enlarged towards their tips, which do not extend beyond the posterior corners of the head. Thorax narrower than the head, broader in front than behind, scarcely compressed laterally, in profile feebly arcuate above, the pro- and mesonotum and base of the epinotum subequal, flattened, separated by pronounced sutures; the base of the epinotum somewhat longer than the sloping, straight declivity with which it forms an obtuse angle. Petiole rather high, in profile convex in front, flattened behind, with rather blunt border; seen from behind, narrow below, expanded above, with broadly rounded upper border, feebly notched in the middle. Gaster of the usual shape. Legs rather short, with stout femora; tibae without rows of bristles on their flexor surfaces.
Mandibles lustrous or somewhat shining, very finely striated, with scattered, coarse punctures towards their inner borders. Head, thorax and antennae opaque or subopaque, finely and densely punctate. Cheeks and clypeus also with scattered, somewhat elongated, piligerous foveolae. Petiole, gaster and legs more shining, rather coarsely and transversely shagreened, with scattered piligerous punctures.
Hairs on the body rather abundant, delicate, short, erect and sordid white; absent on the sides and posterior corners of the head, short and obtuse on the clypeus and cheeks; absent on the scapes, except at their tips. Legs with very short, sparse, oblique hairs; femora with a row of long, erect hairs on their flexor surfaces. Pubescence extremely short and sparse, visible only on the antennal scapes, posterior portion of the head and basal gastric segment. Color black; mandibles, clypeus, cheeks, antennre, tibiae, tarsi and tips of femora ferruginous or dark red.
Minor Length, 4-5 mm.
Head resembles that of the worker major, but is smaller, with straighter sides, more converging anteriorly. Eyes more convex. Antennal scapes reaching about one-third their length beyond the posterior corners of the head. Like the worker major in sculpture, pilosity and color, except that the red coloration of the head is confined to its anterior border. There are no foveolae on the cheeks and clypeus. The hairs on the body are also shorter and less abundant.
References
- Alatorre-Bracamontes, C.E., Vásquez-Bolaños, M. 2010. Lista comentada de las hormigas (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) del norte de México. Dugesiana 17(1): 9-36.
- Creighton, W. S. 1965b. Studies on southwestern ants belonging to Camponotus, subgenus Myrmobrachys (Hymenoptera, Formicidae). American Museum Novitates 2239: 1-9 (page 6, worker, queen, male described, page 3, Senior synonym of zuni)
- Emery, C. 1895d. Beiträge zur Kenntniss der nordamerikanischen Ameisenfauna. (Schluss). Zool. Jahrb. Abt. Syst. Geogr. Biol. Tiere 8: 257-360 (page 336, Senior synonym of erythropus)
- Emery, C. 1896j. Saggio di un catalogo sistematico dei generi Camponotus, Polyrhachis e affini. Mem. R. Accad. Sci. Ist. Bologna (5)5:363-382 (page 377, Subspecies of senex)
- Forel, A. 1879a. Études myrmécologiques en 1879 (deuxième partie [1re partie en 1878]). Bull. Soc. Vaudoise Sci. Nat. 16: 53-128 (page 83, soldier described)
- Forel, A. 1914a. Le genre Camponotus Mayr et les genres voisins. Rev. Suisse Zool. 22: 257-276 (page 270, Combination in C. (Myrmobrachys))
- Mackay, W. P. and E. Mackay. 2002. The ants of New Mexico (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Edwin Mellen Press, Lewiston, NY.
- Vanoye-Eligio, V., Berrones-Morales, M., Rosas-Mejía, M. 2020. Myrmecological fauna (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) collected with Multilure-type traps in a Neotropical transitional region from northeastern Mexico. Florida Entomologist 103: 127-129.
- Varela-Hernández, F., Medel-Zosayas, B., Martínez-Luque, E.O., Jones, R.W., De la Mora, A. 2020. Biodiversity in central Mexico: Assessment of ants in a convergent region. Southwestern Entomologist 454: 673-686.
- Wheeler, W. M. 1910g. The North American ants of the genus Camponotus Mayr. Ann. N. Y. Acad. Sci. 20: 295-354 (page 346, revived status as species)
References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics
- Boulton A.M. and P.S. Ward. 2002. Ants. Chapter 5 in A New island Biogeography of the Sea of Cortes. T.J. Case, M.L. Cody and E. Ezcurra. Oxford university Press.
- Dattilo W. et al. 2019. MEXICO ANTS: incidence and abundance along the Nearctic-Neotropical interface. Ecology https://doi.org/10.1002/ecy.2944
- Emery C. 1886. Saggio di un catalogo sistematico dei generi Camponotus, Polyrhachis e affini. Memorie della Reale Accademia delle Scienze dell'Istituto di Bologna 5: 363-382
- Johnson R. Personnal Database. Accessed on February 5th 2014 at http://www.asu.edu/clas/sirgtools/resources.htm
- Johnson, R.A. and P.S. Ward. 2002. Biogeography and endemism of ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in Baja California, Mexico: a first overview. Journal of Biogeography 29:10091026/
- Kempf, W.W. 1972. Catalago abreviado das formigas da regiao Neotropical (Hym. Formicidae) Studia Entomologica 15(1-4).
- Mackay W. P. and Mackay, E. E. 2002. The ants of New Mexico (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Lewiston, New York: Edwin Mellen Press, 400 pp.
- Vergara-Torres C. A., M. Vasquez-Bolanos, A. M. Corona-Lopez, V. H. Toledo-Hernandez, and A. Flores-Palacios. 2016. Ant (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) Diversity in the Canopy of a Tropical Dry Forest in Tepoztl an, Central Mexico. Annals of the Entomological Society of America 2016: 1–7.
- Vásquez-Bolaños M. 2011. Lista de especies de hormigas (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) para México. Dugesiana 18: 95-133
- Ward P.S. and A.M. Boulton. 2002. Checklist of the ants of the Gulf of California Islands. In Island Biogeography of the sea of Cortes. T.J. Case, M.L. Cody and E. Ezcurra Editors. 690 pp.
- Wheeler W. M. 1917. The mountain ants of western North America. Proceedings of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences 52: 457-569.