Cataglyphis minos

Cataglyphis minos
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Hymenoptera
Family:	Formicidae
Subfamily:	Formicinae
Tribe:	Formicini
Genus:	Cataglyphis
Species group:	cursor
Species complex:	cursor
Species:	C. minos
Binomial name
	Cataglyphis minos; Borowiec & Salata, 2022

This is a rare, mountain species limited to Crete (Greece), where it is restricted to areas above the upper edge of the forest at the altitude between 1316 and 2250 m. Nests are in soil.

Photo Gallery

Borowiec & Salata (2022), Fig. 62.1-2. Cataglyphis minos: 1 – holotype major worker, dorsal, 2 – holotype major worker, lateral (photographed by Lech Borowiec).
Borowiec & Salata (2022), Fig. 62.3-5. Cataglyphis minos: 3 – setose major worker, dorsal, 4 – setose major worker, lateral, 5 – holotype major worker, head (photographed by Lech Borowiec).
Borowiec & Salata (2022), Fig. 62.6-8. Cataglyphis minos: 6 – minor worker, dorsal, 7 – minor worker, lateral, 8 – minor worker, head (photographed by Lech Borowiec).
Borowiec & Salata (2022), Fig. 62.9-11. Cataglyphis minos: 9 – gyne, dorsal, 10 – gyne, lateral, 11 – gyne, head (photographed by Lech Borowiec).

Identification

With Cataglyphis cretica and Cataglyphis hellenica this species forms a separate group of similar species with dark, reddish brown to almost black body. Cataglyphis minos is the most setose species in this group, the only species with erected setae on antennal scapes, pronotum, propodeum and in major workers on first gastral tergite.

Gyne/queen of C. minos differs from sympatric C. cretica in numerous setae on occipital part of head, dorsum of mesosoma and anterior slope of first gastral tergite.

Both species differ also in shape of petiole, which is very broad, cordiform with deeply emarginate dorsal margin in C. minos and broad, with softly rounded sides and truncate or very shallowly emarginate dorsal margin in C. cretica. Although both species are spread on the whole Crete they are separated geographically because C. minos occurs only in upper parts of mountains between 1316 and 2250 m while C. cretica occurs only in low and mid altitudes from sea level to 1240 m.

Keys including this Species

Key to Cataglyphis of Greece

Distribution

Endemic to Crete.

Latitudinal Distribution Pattern

Latitudinal Range: 35.2° to 35.0°.


North Temperate	North Subtropical	Tropical	South Subtropical	South Temperate

Source: Borowiec & Salata, 2022

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists

Palaearctic Region: Greece (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

Nomenclature

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

minos. Cataglyphis minos Borowiec, L. & Salata, 2022: 142, fig. 62.1-11 (w.q.) GREECE (Crete).
- Type-material: holotype major worker, 8 paratype major workers, 7 paratype minor workers, 1 paratype queen.
- Type-locality: holotype Greece: Crete I., Rethymno Prov., Nida Plateau, 1370 m., 35°15’N, 24°50’E, 25.iv.2014 (S. Salata); paratypes: 4 major workers, 1 minor worker, 1 queen Crete I., Heraklion Prov., Rouvas Forest loc. 1, 1316 m., 5.v.2014 (S. Salata), 3 major workers, 1 minor worker Crete I., Rethymno, Psiloritis, N Lochria, 1950 m., 2.vii.2000 (E. Nikolakakis), 2 minor workers CreteI. , Chania dist., Kefka Ori, 1800 m., 26.ix.1991 (A. Trichas), 2 minor workers Crete I., Heraklion Prov., Diplori, 1350 m., 17.viii.1999 (E. Nikolakakis), 1 minor worker Crete I., Rethymno, Psiloritis, 1950 m., 12.vi.2001 (E. Nikolakakis), 1 major worker Crete I., Rethymno, Mt Psiloritis, 2250 m., 31.x.2000 (I. Stathi).
- Type-depositories: MNHW (holotype); MHNG, MNHW (paratypes).
- Distribution: Greece.

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

Description

Worker

Moderately large, polymorphic; Minor HL: 1.159-1.222 (mean 1.191); HW: 1.000-1.005 (mean 1.003); SL: 1.270-2.286 (mean 1.278); EL: 0.373-0.381 (mean 0.377); ML: 1.86-1.88; MW: 0.75-0.84. Color. Head and mesosoma reddish brown to brown, gaster sometimes paler than mesosoma, yellowish brown, antennae yellowish, legs from yellowish brown to mostly brown only tarsi yellowish, fore tibiae often paler than fore femora, in the darkest specimens mid and hind femora dark brown, slightly darker than tibiae, in many specimens the surface with a slight brass sheen. Head. 1.2 times longer than wide, in front of eyes parallelsided, behind eyes regularly rounded. Clypeus trapezoidal, transverse, its anterior margin convex with crenulate anterior margin, sides strongly convergent posterad, posterior margin short, straight, whole surface distinctly microreticulated, in the middle of clypeal plate tending to form longitudinal striation, surface indistinctly dull; sides of clypeal surface with sparse and short, hardly visible appressed hairs, anterior margin with a row of 6 very long setae, central part of clypeus close to base with a pair of long erected setae. Head distinctly microreticulate, appears opalescent dull, only on sides with sparse and short appressed pubescence, appears mostly unhaired, sculpture on frons tending to form longitudinal striation, frontal area with one or two pairs of long erected setae, ocellar area with 1-3 short erected setae, occipital area without to with 4 long erected setae, gular area with 2-4 short to long erected setae. Scape long, thin, 1.3 times longer than width of head, slightly, regularly widened from base to apex, its surface microreticulate but shiny, with very short and very sparse appressed pubescence, in fresh specimens with 1-3 short erected setae. Funicular segments elongate, thin, first segment 3.6 times as long as wide and approximately 1.7 times as long as second segment, third segment as long as to slightly shorter than second, the rest of funicular segments distinctly longer than broad. Eyes big, elongate oval, 0.32 length of head. Mandibles very elongate, with longitudinal sculpture, surface shiny. Mesosoma. Elongate 2.2-2.5 times as long as wide, dorsally and laterally distinctly microreticulated, surface indistinctly shiny, only slightly opalescent. In lateral view dorsum with deep mesonotal groove, propodeum regularly convex, rounded. Surface of pronotal dorsum and mesonotum with short and scarce, hardly visible depressed hairs, propodeum with slightly longer and dense pubescence than two anterior segments; pronotum with 1-2 long erected setae, mesonotum in posterior part with 3 short erected setae, propodeum without or with 1-2 short erected setae. Waist and gaster. Petiole in form of broad, moderately thick scale with convex anterior and flat posterior face, apex almost truncate; surface distinctly microreticulated covered with short and sparse appressed hairs, margins lacking erected setae. Gaster shorter than mesosoma, tergites with microreticulation partly tending to form transverse microstriation, surface distinctly shiny, covered with very short and scarce appressed hairs; first two tergites lacking erected setae, third tergite with 2 erected setae. Legs. Very long and thin, hind femora longer than mesosoma, surface of legs covered with sparse hairs, inner margin of tibiae with row of thorns. Ventral surface of fore femora with 2-3 long erected setae.

Major: HL: 1.429-1.700 (mean 1.582); HW: 1.302-1.500 (mean 1.429); SL:1.556-1.762 (mean 1.643); EL: 0.437-0.476 (mean 0.461); ML:2.13-2.40; MW: 1.02-1.12. In all characters except size similar to minor workers including color variation and sculpture. Head proportionally stouter, as long as wide to 1.1 times longer than wide, central part of clypeus with 3-4 long erected setae, gular area with 4-6 short to long erected setae, occipital area with 4-6 erected setae. Scape proportionally shorter, 1.1-1.2 times as long as width of head, slightly, regularly widened from base to apex, its surface microreticulate but shiny, with short and sparse appressed pubescence, usually with 2-4 erected setae. Eyes proportionally smaller, 0.29 length of head; pronotum with 2-6 long erected setae, mesonotum with 2-4 erected setae anteriorly and 3-4 posteriorly, propodeum with 4-11 short to long erected setae; petiolar apex broadly truncate, often slightly excavate in the middle; first tergite with 0-3, second tergite 2-4, third tergite 4-6 erected setae; ventral surface of fore femora with 5-10 long erected setae.

Queen

Body predominantly brownish black, head partly reddish brown, femora yellowish brown, tibiae and tarsi yellwissh, antennae yellow. Frons with two pairs of long erected setae, occipital part of head with 8 long erected setae. Pronotum along posterior marin with a row of long erected setae, whole surface of scutum and scutellum and propodeum with numerous erected setae. First gastral tergite only on anterior slope with several long erected setae, second tergite lacking erected setae, third tergite posterolaterally with one or two pairs of erected setae, fourth tergite across middle with a row of erected setae. Anterior face of antennal scapus with several short erct setae. Ventral side of fore femors with 7-9, mid femora 5-6 and hind femora at base with 2-3 long and 1-3 short erected setae. Petiolar scale very broad, thin in profile, upper margin deeply emarginate.

Type Material

Holotype major worker: “GREECE Crete Rethymno | Prov. Nida Plateau, 1370 m | 35°15’N 24°50’E | 25.04.14 S. Salata” (preserved in MNHW-DBET).
Paratypes gyne and two major workers: “GREECE Crete Heraklion | Prov. Rouvas Forest loc. 1 | 1316 m 35°09N 2456’E | 05.05.14 S. Salata (MNHW-DBET); two paratypes major workers and one paratype minor worker: “GREECE, Crete, Iraklion | Rouvas Forest loc. 1, 1316 m | 35.15694 N / 24.93957 | 5 V 2014, S. Salata (MNHW-DBET, MHNG); three paratypes major workers and one paratype minor worker: “GREECE, Crete, Rethymno | Psiloritis, N of Lochria 1950 m |35.2051 N / 24.7838 E | 2 VII 2000, E. Nikolakakis” (MNHW-DBET); two paratypes minor workers: “GREECE, Crete, Chania | dist. Lefka Ori, 1800m, | 35°16’N / 24°03’ E, 26.09 | 91, Trichas A.” (MNHW-DBET); two paratypes minor workers: “GREECE, Crete, Heraklion | Prov. Diplori, 1350 m | 35°10’N / 24°56’E, 17.8.99 | E. Nikolakakis” (MN-HW-DBET); one paratype major worker: “GREECE Crete Rethymno | Psiloritis, 1950m, | 35°11’N / 24°47’E, 12.6.2001|91, E. Nikolakakis” (MNHW-DBET); one paratype major worker: “GREECE Crete Rethymno | distr. Psiloritis Mt. 2250 m | 35°12’N / 24°47’E, 31.10 |200, Stathi I.” (MNHW-DBET).

Etymology

Named after Minos, a mythical King of Crete, son of Zeus and Europa.

Taxonomic Notes

This species was listed by Salata et al. (2020: 25) as Cataglyphis cf. cretica sp. 1.

References