Lepisiota surchanica

AntWiki: The Ants --- Online
Lepisiota surchanica
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hymenoptera
Family: Formicidae
Subfamily: Formicinae
Tribe: Plagiolepidini
Genus: Lepisiota
Species: L. surchanica
Binomial name
Lepisiota surchanica
(Kuznetsov-Ugamsky, 1929)

Pashaei Rad et al. (2018) found this species in Iran on the ground in a moderate rainfall area.

Identification

Distribution

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists

Palaearctic Region: Iran, Kazakhstan (type locality).

Distribution based on AntMaps

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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

Castes

Nomenclature

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

  • surchanica. Acantholepis frauenfeldi subsp. surchanica Kuznetsov-Ugamsky, 1929c: 491, fig. 15 (w.) KAZAKHSTAN.
    • Combination in Lepisiota: Bolton, 1995b: 228.
    • Subspecies of frauenfeldi: Bolton, 1995b: 228.
    • Status as species: Pashaei Rad et al., 2018: 6.

Taxonomic Notes

Pashaei Rad et al. (2018): Type location Uzbekistan, no type images but type drawings. Original name Acantholepis frauenfeldi surchanica Kuznetsov-Ugamsky, 1929. The status is revised as the fine surface sculpture and the petiole shape, notably the upper margin, seem diagnostic.

Note that Bolton (in his unpublished An online catalogue of the ants of the world, 15 Feb. 2020) does not recognise the species status proposed by Pashaei Rad et al. (2018), noting that "the entries in this publication are omitted from the catalogue as it contains numerous nomenclatural errors; it also ignores previous taxonomic decisions, and entirely fails to apply ICZN rules that govern the availability of names in the species-group." He considers this taxon to be a subspecies of frauenfeldi.

Description

References