Camponotus nigroaeneus

Camponotus nigroaeneus
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Hymenoptera
Family:	Formicidae
Subfamily:	Formicinae
Tribe:	Camponotini
Genus:	Camponotus
Species:	C. nigroaeneus
Binomial name
Camponotus nigroaeneus (Smith, F., 1858) Specimen Labels
Synonyms
Camponotus nigroaeneus divus Forel, 1907

Nothing is known about the biology of Camponotus nigroaeneus.

Identification

Keys including this Species

• Key to Australian Camponotus minors of the southwestern Botanical Province
• Key to Australian Camponotus species

Distribution

Latitudinal Distribution Pattern

Latitudinal Range: -30.63333333° to -38.01666667°.

North Temperate	North Subtropical	Tropical	South Subtropical	South Temperate

• Source: AntMaps

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists

Australasian Region: Australia (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.

Castes

Worker

Images from AntWeb

Syntype of Camponotus nigroaeneus divus. Worker. Specimen code casent0910392. Photographer Z. Lieberman, uploaded by California Academy of Sciences.	Owned by MHNG, Geneva, Switzerland.

Nomenclature

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

• nigroaeneus. Formica nigroaenea Smith, F. 1858b: 40 (s.) AUSTRALIA (Victoria).
  • Type-material: holotype major worker.
  • Type-locality: Australia: Victoria, Melbourne (no collector’s name).
  • Type-depository: BMNH.
  • Lowne, 1865a: 277 (w.); Wheeler, G.C. & Wheeler, J. 1970: 650 (l.).
  • Combination in Camponotus: Mayr, 1862: 663;
  • combination in C. (Myrmoturba): Forel, 1914a: 267;
  • combination in C. (Myrmophyma): Emery, 1925b: 111.
  • Status as species: Mayr, 1862: 663 (redescription); Mayr, 1863: 400; Roger, 1863b: 44; Lowne, 1865a: 277; Mayr, 1876: 60 (in key); Dalla Torre, 1893: 244; Emery, 1896d: 373 (in list); Forel, 1907a: 34; Forel, 1910b: 74; Emery, 1925b: 111; Clark, 1929: 123; Taylor & Brown, 1985: 117; Taylor, 1987a: 14; Bolton, 1995b: 113; McArthur, 2007a: 324; McArthur, 2009: 283 (redescription); McArthur, 2010: 90; McArthur, 2014: 70.
  • Senior synonym of divus: McArthur, 2009: 283.
  • Distribution: Australia.
• divus. Camponotus nigroaeneus subsp. divus Forel, 1907a: 34 (w.) AUSTRALIA (New South Wales).
  • Type-material: holotype (?) minor worker.
  • [Note: no indication of number of specimens is given.]
  • Type-locality: Australia: New South Wales, Blue Mts, Mt Victoria (L. Biró).
  • Type-depository: MHNG (perhaps also HNHM).
  • Combination in C. (Myrmophyma): Emery, 1925b: 111.
  • Subspecies of nigroaeneus: Forel, 1915b: 97; Emery, 1925b: 111; Taylor & Brown, 1985: 117; Taylor, 1987a: 14; Bolton, 1995b: 96.
  • Junior synonym of nigroaeneus: McArthur, 2009: 283.

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

Description

Worker

Worker. Length 3« lines (= 7 mm). Black, with a green tinge. Head large, wider than the thorax, emarginate behind; the clypeus subcarinate, its anterior margin slightly notched in the middle; mandibles obscurely ferruginous, punctured and strongly dentate within. Thorax short, rounded in front, much narrower behind, terminating almost in a point at the verge of the truncation of the metathorax (= propodeum); the apical joints of the tarsi obscurely rufo-piccous. Abdomen ovate, thinly covered with fine silky pale yellow pubescence; the margins of the segments thinly fringed with pale glittering yellow hairs, a few hairs of the same color sprinkled over the head and thorax; scale subovate, small rounded above.

Mayr (1862): In addition to Smith's description: Worker minor. Length 6 mm. Black, almost matte, with a tinge of olive green on the gaster and thorax; on the gaster there are a few long erect hairs, a few more on the on the thorax. Pubescence not very fine flat lying is sparse on the head, denser on the thorax and gaster and very sparse on the legs. The head is finely and densely punctate like a thimble. The thorax is densely and finely striate. The gaster has fine dense transverse striations. Similar to micans the thorax is slightly convex on top and the basal and sloping surfaces of the metanotum (= propodeum) form a very distinct angle with one another.

Lowne (1865): The small workers appear not to have been hitherto described. They are 2 lines (= 4 mm) long, black, with a green tinge. Head as wide as the thorax, elongated, and rounded behind. Clypeus neither carinated nor notched, thinly covered with golden hairs. In other respects the small workers are exactly like the large ones: they are very conspicuous when alive, on account of the bright golden pubescence which covers the abdomen; I know nothing of their habits, except that I have always found them on the ground.

McArthur (2009) – Major. Head sides convex tapering anteriorly. Vertex mostly flat. Clypeus anterior margin median half concave, bounded by two blunt teeth. Mandibles with 6 teeth. Pronotum feebly margined anteriorly. Mesosoma in profile convex. Propodeal angle gently convex. PD / D ~ 1.5. Petiolar node summit blunt in side view. Mesosoma in profile dorsum with about 20 fairly evenly spaced long erect setae. Underside of head with one to a few erect long setae, scape and tibiae with indistinct short setae raised a few degrees, dorsum of gaster with sparse whitish short decumbent setae. Colour: mostly black.

Minor. Head sides straight slightly tapering anteriorly. Vertex convex. Clypeus anterior margin median half with a notch. Mandibles with 6 teeth. Pronotum margined anteriorly. Mesonotum and propodeum weakly convex. Propodeal angle about 135°. PD / D ~ 2.5. Petiolar node summit blunt in side view. Mesosoma in profile dorsum with about 20 fairly evenly spaced long erect setae. Underside of head with one to a few erect long setae, scape and tibiae with indistinct short setae raised a few degrees, dorsum of gaster with sparse whitish short decumbent setae. Colour: mostly black. Morphometrics:

Holotype of C. nigroaeneus, (major worker), HW 2.2, HL 2.10, PW 1.90, FCW 0.80, HT 1.5, TL 1.55, Syntype of C. nigroaeneus divus (medium worker), HW 1.1, HL 1.5, PW 1.0, FCW 0.60, HT 0.8, TL 1.4.

Type Material

Hab. Melbourne.

McArthur (2009) – Holotype of C. nigroaeneus (The Natural History Museum): major worker “Holotype BM 11 625 Melbourne Vic”. 1 syntype of C. nigroaeneus divus (Musee d'Histoire Naturelle Genève): 1 medium worker “Typus Mt.Victoria NSW”.

• Camponotus nigroaeneus: Syntype, 1 worker, Mt. Victoria, New South Wales, Australia, Musee d'Histoire Naturelle Genève.
• Formica nigroaenea Smith, 1858: Holotype, worker, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, The Natural History Museum.

References

• Emery, C. 1925d. Hymenoptera. Fam. Formicidae. Subfam. Formicinae. Genera Insectorum 183: 1-302 (page 111, Combination in C. (Myrmophyma))
• Forel, A. 1914a. Le genre Camponotus Mayr et les genres voisins. Rev. Suisse Zool. 22: 257-276 (page 267, Combination in C. (Myrmoturba))
• Heterick, B.E. 2021. A guide to the ants of Western Australia. Part I: Systematics. Records of the Western Australian Museum, Supplement 86, 1-245 (doi:10.18195/issn.0313-122x.86.2021.001-245).
• 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).
• Lowne, B. T. 1865a. Contributions to the natural history of Australian ants. Entomologist 2: 275-280 (page 277, worker described)
• Mayr, G. 1862. Myrmecologische Studien. Verh. K-K. Zool.-Bot. Ges. Wien 12: 649-776 (page 663, combination in Camponotus)
• McArthur, A. J. 2009. New species, new status and new synonymy for Camponotus from Australia (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Myrmecologische Nachrichten. 12:273-286.
• Smith, F. 1858b. Catalogue of hymenopterous insects in the collection of the British Museum. Part VI. Formicidae. London: British Museum, 216 pp. (page 40, soldier described)
• Steinbauer, M.J. 2007. A note on manna feeding by ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Journal of Natural History 30, 1185–1192 (doi:10.1080/00222939600770641).
• Wheeler, G. C.; Wheeler, J. 1970b. Ant larvae of the subfamily Formicinae: second supplement. Ann. Entomol. Soc. Am. 63: 648-656 (page 650, larva described)

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

• Clark J. 1929. Results of a collecting trip to the Cann River, East Gippsland. Victorian Naturalist (Melbourne) 46: 115-123.
• McArthur A. J. 2009. New species, new status and new synonymy for Camponotus from Australia (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Myrmecological News 12: 273-286.