Colobopsis truncata

Colobopsis truncata
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Hymenoptera
Family:	Formicidae
Subfamily:	Formicinae
Tribe:	Camponotini
Genus:	Colobopsis
Species:	C. truncata
Binomial name
Colobopsis truncata (Spinola, 1808) Specimen Labels
Synonyms
Formica fuscipes Mayr, 1853

Colobopsis truncata is a common mediterranean zoogeographical element distributed mostly in southern and central Europe and in the southern part of eastern Europe, as well as occurring east as far as Kopet Dag, Iran (Radchenko 1997c, Suchocka et al. 2008) and south as far as Maghreb, Algeria (Rigato & Toni, 2011). It is a thermophilous species living exclusively arboreally in open habitats, orchards and light forests (Marko et al., 2009).

Photo Gallery

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  Colobopsis truncata minor worker. Photo by Michal Kukla.
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  Colobopsis truncata major worker. Photo by Michal Kukla.
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  Colobopsis truncata workers (major and minor) and larvae. Photo by Michal Kukla.

Identification

Ionescu-Hirsch (2009) - This is a small dimorphic species with a phragmotic “soldier”. The major worker has a cylindrical, abruptly truncate head. The minor worker has a rounded head and can be recognized by the straight frontal carina, antennal insertion close to the middle of the frontal carina, propodeum dorsum distinctly concave in lateral view, and by the petiole scale with acute summit in lateral view and indented dorsum in front view.

Keys including this Species

• Key to Camponotus of Israel
• Key to Camponotus of Turkey

Distribution

Ionescu-Hirsch (2009) - Mostly southern and central Europe, also northwest Africa, Crimea, Caucasus, eastern Mediterranean, and the Middle East (Radchenko, 1997b).

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists

Palaearctic Region: Albania, Algeria, Andorra, Armenia, Austria, Balearic Islands, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iberian Peninsula, Israel, Italy (type locality), Malta, Montenegro, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Macedonia, Republic of Moldova, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Ukraine.

Distribution based on AntMaps

Distribution based on AntWeb specimens

Check data from AntWeb

Biology

Life History Traits

• Mean colony size: 50 (Beckers et al., 1989)
• Foraging behaviour: solitary forager (Beckers et al., 1989)

Nomenclature

The following information is derived from Barry Bolton's New General Catalogue, a catalogue of the world's ants.

• truncata. Formica truncata Spinola, 1808: 244 (q.) ITALY. Dufour & Perris, 1840: 49 (w.); Forel, 1874: 45 (s.w.); Mayr, 1861: 38 (w.q.); Emery, 1916b: 235 (m., in key). Combination in Colobopsis: Mayr, 1861: 38; in Camponotus (Colobopsis): Forel, 1893b: 435. Combination in Colobopsis: Ward, et al., 2016: 350. Senior synonym of fuscipes: Emery & Forel, 1879: 449; Forel, 1915d: 73. See also: Kutter, 1977c: 207.
• fuscipes. Formica fuscipes Mayr, 1853c: 280 (w.) AUSTRIA. Combination in Colobopsis: Mayr, 1861: 38. Junior synonym of truncatus: Emery & Forel, 1879: 449.

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

Description

Worker

Ionescu-Hirsch (2009) - TL = 3.5–4.4, HL = 0.92–1.21, HW = 0.78–1.05, EL = 0.29–0.31, SL = 0.72–0.66, ML = 1.23–1.23, PW = 0.59–0.78, mTbL = 0.66–0.62, hTbL = 0.82–0.78 (n = 10).

References

• Beckers R., Goss, S., Deneubourg, J.L., Pasteels, J.M. 1989. Colony size, communication and ant foraging Strategy. Psyche 96: 239-256 (doi:10.1155/1989/94279).
• Emery, C. 1916a [1915]. Fauna entomologica italiana. I. Hymenoptera.-Formicidae. Bull. Soc. Entomol. Ital. 47: 79-275 (page 235, male described (in key))
• Emery, C.; Forel, A. 1879. Catalogue des Formicides d'Europe. Mitt. Schweiz. Entomol. Ges. 5: 441-481 (page 449, Senior synonym of fuscipes)
• Forel, A. 1874. Les fourmis de la Suisse. Systématique, notices anatomiques et physiologiques, architecture, distribution géographique, nouvelles expériences et observations de moeurs. Neue Denkschr. Allg. Schweiz. Ges. Gesammten Naturwiss. 26: 1-452 (page 45, soldier, worker described)
• Forel, A. 1893c. Les Formicides de l'Empire des Indes et de Ceylan. Part II. J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 7: 430-439 (page 435, Combination in Camponotus (Colobopsis))
• Forel, A. 1915d. Fauna insectorum helvetiae. Hymenoptera. Formicidae. Die Ameisen der Schweiz. Mitt. Schweiz. Entomol. Ges. 12(B Beilage: 1-77 (page 73, Senior synonym of fuscipes)
• Ionescu-Hirsch, A. 2010 (2009). An annotated list of Camponotus of Israel, with a key and descriptions of new species. Israel Journal of Entomology. 39:57-98.
• Kutter, H. 1977c. Hymenoptera, Formicidae. Insecta Helv. Fauna 6: 1-298 (page 207, see also)
• Mayr, G. 1861. Die europäischen Formiciden. Nach der analytischen Methode bearbeitet. Wien: C. Gerolds Sohn, 80 pp. (page 38, worker, queen described, Combination in Colobopsis)
• Marko, B., Ionescu-Hirsch, A., Szasz-Len, A. 2009. Genus Camponotus Mayr, 1861 (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in Romania: distribution and identification key to the worker caste. Entomologica romanica 14: 29-41.
• Rigato, F. and Toni, I. 2011. Short notes 21. Hymenoptera, Formicidae. Pp. 873-882 in: Nardi, G.; Whitmore, D.; Bardiani, M.; Birtele, D.; Mason, F.; Spada, L.; Cerretti, P. (eds.) 2011. Biodiversity of Marganai and Montimannu (Sardinia). Research in the framework of the ICP Forests network. Conservazione Habitat Invertebrati, 5. Sommacampagna, Verona: Cierre Edizioni, 896 pp.
• Spinola, M. 1808. Insectorum Liguriae species novae aut rariores, quae in agro ligustico nuper detexit, descripsit et iconibus illustravit Maximilianus Spinola, adjecto catalogo specierum auctoribus jam enumeratarum, quae in eadam regione passim occurren (page 244, queen described)
• Ward, P.S., Blaimer, B.B., Fisher, B.L. 2016. A revised phylogenetic classification of the ant subfamily Formicinae (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), with resurrection of the genera Colobopsis and Dinomyrmex. Zootaxa 4072 (3): 343–357 (doi:10.11646/zootaxa.4072.3.4).