Leptogenys arcuata

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Leptogenys arcuata
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hymenoptera
Family: Formicidae
Subfamily: Ponerinae
Tribe: Ponerini
Genus: Leptogenys
Species group: arcuata
Species: L. arcuata
Binomial name
Leptogenys arcuata
Roger, 1861

Leptogenys arcuata casent0178794 profile 1.jpg

Leptogenys arcuata casent0178794 dorsal 1.jpg

Specimen labels

Synonyms

Nothing is known about the biology of Leptogenys arcuata.

Identification

Lattke (2011) - Scape with abundant suberect hairs; hypostomal teeth not visible with head in full-face view; cephalic dorsum mostly smooth and shining with scattered piligerous punctulae; pronotum mostly smooth and shining, with few transverse rugulae on collar; propleuron mostly smooth and shining; metanotal groove scrobiculate.

A member of the arcuata species group.

Keys including this Species

Distribution

Latitudinal Distribution Pattern

Latitudinal Range: 5.95° to -14.7889°.

 
North
Temperate 		North
Subtropical 		Tropical South
Subtropical 		South
Temperate

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists

Neotropical Region: Barbados, Bolivia, Brazil, French Guiana, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guyana, Lesser Antilles, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname (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

Explore-icon.png Explore Overview of Leptogenys biology 
The biology of Leptogenys arcuata is poorly known.

The Leptogenys genus page has more details about the general biology of ants in this genus, some of which is summarized in what follows. New World species have relatively small ranges, generally occur in humid forests and prey on isopods. Colonies may occur in high densities on a local scale, with up to 5 or 6 species present. Nest size tends to be small with just 20 or 30 individuals in a mature colony. Nests of most species may be found in rotten wood on the ground, usually within cavities in logs or large branches, and also beneath bark. Wood-soil and rock-soil interfaces are another common nesting location, as well as rock crevices, and a few species may nest directly in the soil. Reproduction is most commonly via ergatoid females and, in many species, may include egg-laying workers. ‎

Castes

Queen, unknown. Male not examined.

Nomenclature

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

  • arcuata. Leptogenys arcuata Roger, 1861a: 44 (w.) SURINAM. Forel, 1893g: 359 (m.). Senior synonym of deletangi: Lattke, 2011: 148.
  • deletangi. Leptogenys arcuata st. deletangi Santschi, 1921g: 87 (w.) BOLIVIA. Junior synonym of arcuata: Lattke, 2011: 148.

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

Lattke (2011) - This species can be confused with members of the more commonly encountered Leptogenys pubiceps complex, and the reader should consult the discussion for this complex for advice on how to separate the two. The examined type material consists of two point-mounted workers from Surinam, with the label bearing an additional, but partially illegible name “Deulschbein”. Perhaps it is a locality or the collector’s last name. Both specimens are in good condition but one lacks both antennae; and the other lacks only half of the funiculus. Santschi (1921) described Leptogenys deletangi because of its relatively shorter mandibles, broader head, and metatarsi longer than the tibia, though it is not clear if he meant the metatibia. Comparing the types of L. deletangi with the rest of L. arcuata specimens it was not possible to use Santschi’s diagnostic characters, nor any other characters, for considering such variation as anything more than intraspecific.

L. arcuata is the smallest species of its group. The Carajás series is on average smaller than the other specimens and very polished. L. arcuata usually shows no trace of the hypostomal teeth when the head is in full-face view, and only occasionally will a tooth apex manage to project beyond the clypeal margin. Nevertheless it is possible that the hypostomal tooth can be more prominent in some populations and this possibility was accounted for in the key. The anteroventral spot of node is flattened and smooth as in Leptogenys montuosa, but differs on account of larger hypostomal teeth than in L. montuosa, the larger size of L. montuosa, the striate propleuron of L. montuosa and the presence of punctae on the cephalic dorsum. Specimens of this species have been taken from under stones, and nests found in rotten logs (Forel 1893).

The specimen from French Guiana was identified as L. cf. arcuata as it differs from typical L. acuata in its slightly broader head, eyes more dorsolaterally placed on the head, noticeable hypostomal teeth in cephalic full-face view, smaller propodeal spiracle, elongate node with rougher lateral sculpturing, and a relatively longer subpetiolar process which lacks the ventral flat area. The dorsal propodeum margin in lateral view has its highest point anterad, implying a sharper curvature anterad, but this margin in L. arcuata is evenly convex. The traits of this single specimen were not taken into account for the description of L. arcuata as it could represent a different species, but a description should await the availability of additional material given its similarity with L. arcuata. L. arcuata is mostly South American, but has been taken on some Caribbean islands, indicating the possibility of tramp species capabilities. Forel (1893) describes the male from a nest series collected on the island of St Vincent.

Description

Worker

Lattke (2011) - Metrics (n = 7): HL 0.88-1.00; HW 0.70-0.78; ML 0.52-0.58; EL 0.20-0.28; SL 0.82-0.92; PW 0.57-0.66; WL 1.40-1.60; PH 0.58-0.68; PL 0.38-0.44; DPW 0.40-0.48 mm. CI 0.77-0.80; MI 0.70-0.77; OI 0.26-0.36; SI 1.16-1.21; LPI 1.43-1.70; DPI 0.95–1.11.

Head semi-quadrate in full-face view, slightly longer than wide; lateral margins broadly curved and diverging anterad; posterior margin convex, slightly flattened medially. Eye convex and large, spanning more than one-fourth of lateral cephalic margin. Cephalic dorsum mostly smooth and shining with sparse, piligerous punctulae. Scape mostly smooth basad, becoming punctate apicad, surpasses posterior cephalic margin by one-fourth its length; length of antennal segment III usually less than double its width. Anterior clypeal margin laterally sinusoid, medially straight to slightly convex, medially overhung by triangular process about as long as wide, margins translucent, apex with 4-3 setae. Mandible slightly arched, parallel-sided with brief and weakly concave edentate masticatory margin, single apical tooth present; mandible leaves gap between clypeus when closed, at widest more than twice the mandibular width. PF: 4,4. Scape has abundant inclined hairs. Hypostomal tooth not visible in cephalic full-face view.

Mesosoma with prominent metanotal groove dividing dorsal margin in two large convexities in lateral view: promesonotum, and metanotum-propodeum. Pronotum mostly smooth and shining, with few transverse rugulae on collar; propleuron mostly smooth and shining. Mesopleuron varies from mostly smooth and shining with transverse striae along ventral area to mostly striate with smoother dorsomedian area; well-defined crest separates mesopleuron from mesosternum; metapleural-propodeal suture well impressed. Mesonotum with curved anterior margin in dorsal view, posterior margin mostly straight, dorsum smooth and shining. Metanotal groove more or less scrobiculate. Metapleuron and propodeum with transverse striae, propodeal dorsum mostly smooth, declivity transversely striate; spiracle opening oval, directed posterolaterally.

Node with semi-parallel anterior and posterior margins in lateral view; anterior margin shorter than posterior margin, anterior and posterior margins convex, anterior margin meets dorsal margin in sharp curve, dorsal margin meets posterior margin in abrupt angle. Node with longitudinal to oblique striae on sides; posterior face flattened, smooth and shining, distinctly separated from rest of node. Node as wide as long in dorsal view. Gaster smooth and shining with sparse punctulae. Anterior margin of abdominal segment III mostly vertical in lateral view. Head, mesosoma and abdomen black; clypeus, mandibles, antennae, and legs various shades of brown, usually ferruginous.

Type Material

Lattke (2011):

Syntype workers: Surinam (Deulschbein[?]) (ZMHB) [examined].

Leptogenys arcuata st. deletangi. Syntype workers: Bolivia, Camino de Aroyo Negro a Trinidad (Lizer, Deletang) (NHMB) [examined].

References

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

  • Emery C. 1911. Hymenoptera. Fam. Formicidae. Subfam. Ponerinae. Genera Insectorum 118: 1-125.
  • Fernández F., and T. M. Arias-Penna. 2008. Las hormigas cazadoras en la región Neotropical. Pp. 3-39 in: Jiménez, E.; Fernández, F.; Arias, T.M.; Lozano-Zambrano, F. H. (eds.) 2008. Sistemática, biogeografía y conservación de las hormigas cazadoras de Colombia. Bogotá: Instituto de Investigación de Recursos Biológicos Alexander von Humboldt, xiv + 609 pp.
  • Fernández, F. and S. Sendoya. 2004. Lista de las hormigas neotropicales. Biota Colombiana Volume 5, Number 1.
  • Forel A. 1897. Quelques Formicides de l'Antille de Grenada récoltés par M. H. H. Smith. Transactions of the Entomological Society of London. 1897: 297-300.
  • Franco W., N. Ladino, J. H. C. Delabie, A. Dejean, J. Orivel, M. Fichaux, S. Groc, M. Leponce, and R. M. Feitosa. 2019. First checklist of the ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) of French Guiana. Zootaxa 4674(5): 509-543.
  • Galkowski C. 2016. New data on the ants from the Guadeloupe (Hymenoptera, Formicidae). Bull. Soc. Linn. Bordeaux 151, 44(1): 25-36.
  • Jaffe, Klaus and Lattke, John. 1994. Ant Fauna of the French and Venezuelan Islands in the Caribbean in Exotic Ants, editor D.F. Williams. 182-190.
  • Kempf, W.W. 1972. Catalago abreviado das formigas da regiao Neotropical (Hym. Formicidae) Studia Entomologica 15(1-4).
  • Lattke J. E. 2011. Revision of the New World species of the genus Leptogenys Roger (Insecta: Hymenoptera: Formicidae: Ponerinae). Arthropod Systematics and Phylogeny 69: 127-264
  • Nascimento Santos M., J. H. C. Delabie, and J. M. Queiroz. 2019. Biodiversity conservation in urban parks: a study of ground-dwelling ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in Rio de Janeiro City. Urban Ecosystems https://doi.org/10.1007/s11252-019-00872-8
  • Radoszkowsky O. 1884. Fourmis de Cayenne Française. Trudy Russkago Entomologicheskago Obshchestva 18: 30-39.
  • Santschi F. 1921. Ponerinae, Dorylinae et quelques autres formicides néotropiques. Bulletin de la Société Vaudoise des Sciences Naturelles 54: 81-103.
  • Wheeler W. M. 1905. The ants of the Bahamas, with a list of the known West Indian species. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 21: 79-135.
  • Wheeler, William Morton. 1911. Ants Collected in Grenada, W.I. by Mr. C. T. Brues. Bulletin of the Museum of Comparitive Zoology at Harvard College. 54(5):166-172.
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