Messor alexandri

Messor alexandri
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Hymenoptera
Family:	Formicidae
Subfamily:	Myrmicinae
Tribe:	Stenammini
Genus:	Messor
Species:	M. alexandri
Binomial name
Messor alexandri Tohmé, G. & Tohmé, H., 1981 Specimen Labels

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

Distribution

Latitudinal Distribution Pattern

Latitudinal Range: 36.202778° to 33.716667°.

North Temperate	North Subtropical	Tropical	South Subtropical	South Temperate

• Source: AntMaps

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists

Palaearctic Region: Greece, Iran, Israel, Syria (type locality), Türkiye.

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.

Castes

Images from AntWeb

Syntype of Messor alexandri. Worker. Specimen code casent0913152. Photographer Will Ericson, uploaded by California Academy of Sciences.	Owned by NHMB, Basel, Switzerland.

Syntype of Messor alexandri circumoculus. Worker (major/soldier). Specimen code casent0913209. Photographer Z. Lieberman, uploaded by California Academy of Sciences.	Owned by NHMB, Basel, Switzerland.

Nomenclature

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

• alexandri. Messor alexandri Tohmé, G. & Tohmé, H. 1981: 148.
  • Type-material: syntype workers (number not stated).
  • Type-locality: Turkey (“Syria”): Alexandretta (= Iskenderun) (Geade).
  • Type-depository: NHMB.
  • [First available use of Messor barbarus st. structor var. alexandri Santschi, 1917e: 91 (w.) TURKEY; unavailable (infrasubspecific) name.]
  • As unavailable (infrasubspecific) name: Emery, 1921b: 212; Emery, 1921f: 73; Santschi, 1926f: 292.
  • Subspecies of structor: Tohmé, G. & Tohmé, 2014: 134 (error).
  • Status as species: Collingwood, 1993b: 194; Bolton, 1995b: 252; Vonshak, et al. 2009: 42; Legakis, 2011: 9; Borowiec, L. & Salata, 2012: 511; Borowiec, L. 2014: 101; Lebas, et al. 2016: 298.
  • Distribution: Greece, Israel, Lebanon, Syria, Turkey.

Type Material

Salata & Borowiec (2019): syntype (w.): M. barbarus | sub. structor | v. alexandri | type | Santschi || Type || Sammlung | Dr. F. Santschi | Kairouan || Asi Minor | Alexandretti || ANTWEB | CASENT0913151 (NHMB).

References

• Borowiec, L. 2014. Catalogue of ants of Europe, the Mediterranean Basin and adjacent regions (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Genus (Wroclaw) 25(1-2): 1-340.
• Borowiec, L., Wieczorek, K., Salata, S. 2021. Review of ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) of the Dodecanese Archipelago, Greece. Annals of the Upper Silesian Museum in Bytom Entomology 30: 1-33 (doi:10.5281/ZENODO.5571270).
• Demetriou, J., Georgiadis, C., Ralli, V., Salata, S., Borowiec, L. 2024. Setting the record straight: a re-examination of ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) from Cyprus deposited at the Museum of Zoology of Athens. Zootaxa 55231, 49–69 (doi:10.11646/zootaxa.5523.1.3).
• Kiran, K., Karaman, C. 2020. Additions to the ant fauna of Turkey (Hymenoptera, Formicidae). Zoosystema 42(18), 285-329 (doi:10.5252/zoosystema2020v42a18).
• Pashaei Rad, S., Taylor, B., Torabi, R., Aram, E., Abolfathi, G., Afshari, R., Borjali, F., Ghatei, M., Hediary, F., Jazini, F., Heidary Kiah, V., Mahmoudi, Z., Safariyan, F., Seiri, M. 2018. Further records of ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) from Iran. Zoology in the Middle East 64, 145-159 (doi:10.1080/09397140.2018.1442301).
• Salata, S., Borowiec, L. 2019. Preliminary contributions toward a revision of Greek Messor Forel, 1890 (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Turkish Journal of Zoology 43:52-67 (doi:10.3906/zoo-1809-41).
• Salata, S., Demetriou, J., Georgiadis, C., Borowiec, L. 2023. The genus Messor Forel, 1890 (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in Cyprus. Annales Zoologici 73(2): 215-234 (doi:10.3161/00034541anz2023.73.2.006).
• Santschi, F. 1917e. Races et variétés nouvelles du Messor barbarus L. Bull. Soc. Hist. Nat. Afr. Nord 8: 89-94 (page 91, First available use of Messor barbarus st. structor var. alexandri; unavailable name.)
• Tohmé, G.; Tohmé, H. 1981. Les fourmis du genre Messor en Syrie. Position systématique. Description de quelques ailés et de formes nouvelles. Répartition géographique. Ecol. Mediterr. 7(1 1: 139-153 (page 148, worker described)

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

• Borowiec L. 2014. Catalogue of ants of Europe, the Mediterranean Basin and adjacent regions (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Genus (Wroclaw) 25(1-2): 1-340.
• Borowiec L., and S. Salata. 2012. Ants of Greece - Checklist, comments and new faunistic data (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Genus 23(4): 461-563.
• Menozzi C. 1929. Ricerche faunistiche nelle isole italiane dell'Egeo. Imenotteri (formiche). Archivio Zoologico Italiano. 13: 145-146.
• Pashaei Rad S., B. Taylor, R. Torabi, E. Aram, G. Abolfathi, R. Afshari, F. Borjali, M. Ghatei, F. Hediary, F. Jazini, V. Heidary Kiah, Z. Mahmoudi, F. Safariyan, and M. Seiri. 2018. Further records of ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) from Iran. Zoology in the Middle East 64(2): 145-159.
• Santschi F. 1926. Travaux scientifiques de l'Armée d'Orient (1916-1918). Fourmis. Bulletin du Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle 32: 286-293.
• Santschi, F.. "Races et variétés nouvelles du Messor barbarus L." Bulletin de la Société d' Histoire naturelle de l' Afrique du Nord 8 (1917): 89-94.
• Tohme G. 1996. Formicidae. Etude de la diversité biologique n° 4 . Ministère de l’Agriculture à Beyrouth (Eds.). P85-87.
• Tohme G., and H. Tohme. 2014. Nouvelles liste des especes de fourmis du Liban (Hymenoptera, Formicoidea). Lebanese Science Journal 15(1): 133-141.
• Tohmé, G., and H. Tohmé. "Les fourmis du genre Messor en Syrie. Position systématique. Description de quelques ailés et de formes nouvelles. Répartition géographique." Ecologia Mediterranea 7 (1) (1981): 139-153, fig. 1-22.