Carebara acutispina

Carebara acutispina
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Hymenoptera
Family:	Formicidae
Subfamily:	Myrmicinae
Tribe:	Crematogastrini
Genus:	Carebara
Species group:	acutispina
Species:	C. acutispina
Binomial name
	Carebara acutispina; (Xu, Z., 2003)

The type material was collected from a monsoon evergreen broadleaf forest.

Identification

Xu (2003) - This new species is close to Carebara wheeleri but occiput lacks transverse striations, mandible with 5 teeth, metanotal groove shallowly impressed, body smaller with TL 1.4 mm.

Keys including this Species

Distribution

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists

Palaearctic Region: China (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

Castes

Liu, C. et al. 2020. Ants of the Hengduan Mountains, Figure 64, Carebara acutispina.

Nomenclature

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

acutispina. Oligomyrmex acutispinus Xu, 2003: 315, figs. 16-19 (s.w.) CHINA (Yunnan).
- Type-material: holotype major worker, 1 paratype major worker, 4 paratype minor workers.
- Type-locality: holotype China: Yunnan Prov., Mengla County, Nangongshan, 1380 m., 15.ix.1997, A97-2591 (Z. Xu); paratypes: 4 minor workers with same data, 1 major worker Yunnan Prov., Jinghong County, Mengyang Town, Guanping Village, 1120 m., 7.viii.1997, no. A97-954 (Y. He).
- Type-depository: SFCY.
- Combination in Carebara: Guénard & Dunn, 2012: 41.
- Status as species: Guénard & Dunn, 2012: 41.
- Distribution: China.

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

Description

Worker

Holotype soldier. TL 1.4, HL 0.54, HW 0.40, CI 80, SL 0.23, SI 56, PW 0.23, AL 0.40, PL 0.15, PH 0.11, DPW 0.10. Paratype soldier. TL 1.4, HL 0.53, HW 0.40, CI 76, SL 0.23, SI 56, PW 0.23, AL 0.38, PL 0.13, PH 0.11, DPW 0.10 (1 individual measured), as holotype.

Body small. Head longer than broad, in full face view rectangular. Occipital margin moderately concave, occipital corners roundly prominent. Lateral sides nearly straight. Mandible with 5 teeth. Median portion of clypeus longitudinally depressed, bicarinate and divergent forward, anterior margin weakly concave. Antenna 9 segments with a 2-segmented club, apex of scape reaching to 1/2 of the distance from socket to occipital corner. Eye with 1 facet. In profile view, occiput with a pair of large acute horns. Dorsum of head weakly convex. Promesonotum high and roundly convex. Promesonotal suture obsolete on the dorsum. Metanotum absent. Metanotal groove shallowly impressed. Propodeum with a pair of acute teeth, dorsum convex at anterior portion and sloping down rearwards, declivity concave with narrow thin lateral laminae. Petiole pedunculated anteriorly, ventral face straight. Petiolar node thick, anterior face gently sloping, posterior face steeply sloping, dorsal face roundly prominent. Postpetiolar node roundly convex and lower than petiolar node. In dorsal view, petiolar node as broad as postpetiolar node.

Mandibles and median portion of clypeus smooth and shiny. Head finely reticulate, anterior 3/4 of head dorsum and anterior 1/5 of genae finely longitudinally striate. Reticulations present between occipital horns but without transverse ridge or striations. Ali trunk, petiole and postpetiole densely and finely punctate, interspace appears as fine microreticulations. Gaster smooth and shiny. Head, alitrunk, petiole and postpetiole with sparse erect or suberect hairs and dense decumbent pubescences. Gaster with sparse suberect hairs and abundant decumbent pubescences. Frontal carina with 4 erect long hairs. Scapes and tibiae with dense decumbent pubescences. Head, alitrunk, petiole and postpetiole yellow. Antennae, legs and gaster light yellow.

Paratype workers. TL 0.85-0.93, HL 0.30-0.33, HW 0.28, CI 85-92, SL0.18-0.19, SI 64-68, PW 0.18-0.20, AL 0.28-0.30, PL 0.09-0.10, PH 0.08-0.09, DPW 0.08 (5 individuals measured). As holotype, but body much smaller. Head nearly square, occiput without horns. Occipital margin shallowly concave in the middle, lateral sides weakly convex. Apex of scape reaching 2/3 of the distance from socket to occipital corner. In profile view, promesonotum weakly convex. Body in color light yellow.

Type Material

Holotype. soldier, No. A97-2591, 1380 m, Nangongshan, Mengla County, Yunnan Province, collected in the monsoon evergreen broadleaf forest by Dr. Xu Zheng-Hui on 15 Sep. 1997. Paratypes 4 workers, with same data as holotype. 1 soldier, No. A97-954, 1120 m, Guanping Village, Mengyang Town, Jinghong County, Yunnan Province, collected in the mountain rain forest by Mr. HE Yun-Feng on 7 Aug. 1997. Southwest Forestry University, Kunming, China

References

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

Fontanilla A. M., A. Nakamura, Z. Xu, M. Cao, R. L. Kitching, Y. Tang, and C. J. Burwell. 2019. Taxonomic and functional ant diversity along tropical, subtropical, and subalpine elevational transects in southwest China. Insects 10, 128; doi:10.3390/insects10050128
Guénard B., and R. R. Dunn. 2012. A checklist of the ants of China. Zootaxa 3558: 1-77.
Xu Z. H. 2003. A systematic study on Chinese species of the ant genus Oligomyrmex Mayr (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Acta Zootaxonomica Sinica 28: 310-322.
Xu Z. 2003. A systematic study on Chinese species of the ant genus Oligomyrmex Mayr (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) Acta Zootaxonomica Sinica 28(2): 310-322.