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Loboponera politula
| Loboponera politula | |
|---|---|
| |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Hymenoptera |
| Family: | Formicidae |
| Subfamily: | Ponerinae |
| Tribe: | Ponerini |
| Genus: | Loboponera |
| Species: | L. politula |
| Binomial name | |
| Loboponera politula Bolton & Brown, 2002
| |
Collected from litter and soil in rainforest and cocoa.
Identification
Bolton & Brown (2002) - A member of the obeliscata species group. This species is smaller than Loboponera obeliscata and, beside lacking the unique subpyramidal shape of the petiole node that characterises obeliscata, has much shorter scapes.
Keys including this Species
Distribution
Latitudinal Distribution Pattern
Latitudinal Range: 6.5° to 2.2825°.
| North Temperate |
North Subtropical |
Tropical | South Subtropical |
South Temperate |
- Source: AntMaps
Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists
Afrotropical Region: Ghana, Ivory Coast, Nigeria (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. |
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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
Worker
Images from AntWeb
   
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| Worker. Specimen code casent0003094. Photographer April Nobile, uploaded by California Academy of Sciences. | Owned by CAS, San Francisco, CA, USA. |
   
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| Worker. Specimen code casent0003095. Photographer April Nobile, uploaded by California Academy of Sciences. | Owned by CAS, San Francisco, CA, USA. |
   
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| Holotype of Loboponera politula. Worker. Specimen code casent0102323. Photographer April Nobile, uploaded by California Academy of Sciences. | Owned by NHMUK, London, UK. |
Nomenclature
The following information is derived from Barry Bolton's Online Catalogue of the Ants of the World.
- politula. Loboponera politula Bolton & Brown, 2002: 5, figs. 2, 5 (w.) NIGERIA.
Unless otherwise noted the text for the remainder of this section is reported from the publication that includes the original description.
Description
Worker
Holotype. TL 3.7, HL 0.73, HW 0.64, CI 88, SL 0.52, SI 81, AL 1.09. Paratypes. TL 3.4–3.7, HL 0.70–0.73, HW 0.60–0.64, CI 85–90, SL 0.48–0.52, SI 79–82, AL 1.01–1.09 (3 measured). Characters of obeliscata group and the following. Eye minute, maximum diameter 0.03. Scape when laid back in full-face view distinctly fails to reach occipital margin. Propodeal lamella narrow at sides, petering out at dorsal angle and not continued onto dorsum; the latter separated from the declivity by an angle. Petiole in profile with anterior margin rising to a blunt anterodorsal angle, behind which the dorsum slopes posteriorly and is flat or very feebly convex. In posterior view the petiole node dorsum is broadly evenly rounded. First gastral tergite in profile or in dorsal view with its anterior face overhanging the helcium.
Type Material
Holotype worker, Nigeria: Ibadan, IITA no. 62, 16.vii.1974 (B.R. Critchley) (The Natural History Museum). Paratypes. 1 worker, Ivory Coast: Abidjan, Banco Nat. Pk, 18.iii.1977, primary forest litter (I. Löbl); 1 worker, Ghana: Mampong, 10.viii.1970 (P. Room); 1 worker, Nigeria: near Ibadan, 26.vii.1981, secondary forest, no. 10 (A. Russell-Smith) (BMNH, Museum of Comparative Zoology).
References
- Bolton, B. and Brown, W. L., Jr.. 2002. Loboponera gen. n. and a review of the Afrotropical Plectroctena genus group (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Bulletin of the Natural History Museum London (Entomology). 71:1-18. (page 5, figs. 2, 5 worker described)
References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics
- Bolton B., and W. L. Brown Jr. 2002. Loboponera gen. n. and a review of the Afrotropical Plectroctena genus group (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Bulletin of the Natural History Museum. Entomology Series 71: 1-18.
- Yeo K., S. Konate, S. Tiho, and S. K. Camara. 2011. Impacts of land use types on ant communities in a tropical forest margin (Oumé - Cote d'Ivoire). African Journal of Agricultural Research 6(2): 260-274.