Messor picturatus

Messor picturatus
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Hymenoptera
Family:	Formicidae
Subfamily:	Myrmicinae
Tribe:	Stenammini
Genus:	Messor
Species:	M. picturatus
Binomial name
	Messor picturatus; Santschi, 1927 Specimen Labels
Subspecies
	Messor picturatus maurus Santschi, 1927;

Identification

Collingwood and Agosti (1996) - HW 1.92-2.12; EL/HW 0.21-0.23. This species has the red head and alitrunk of the Messor minor species group but differs in the more rounded head, grainy head and stronger alitrunk sculpture. This is particularly evident in the larger examples. Small workers are hard to tell apart except for the larger eyes. The petiole in M. picturatus is also thicker compared with similar sized examples of M. minor and the anteroventral prominence on the postpetiole is more developed. M. minor examples from Corsica and what appears to be the same species from Tenerife have a few erect hairs on the first gastral tergite. These are restricted to two or three on the posterior margin of the first tergite in M. picturatus.

Distribution

Latitudinal Distribution Pattern

Latitudinal Range: 36.8° to 21.133333°.


North Temperate	North Subtropical	Tropical	South Subtropical	South Temperate

Source: AntMaps

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists

Afrotropical Region: Saudi Arabia.
Palaearctic Region: Algeria (type locality), Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Morocco.

It is known from North Africa, Saudi Arabia and Iraq (Abdul-Rassoul et al. 2013).

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.

Biology

Castes

Nomenclature

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

picturatus. Messor sublaeviceps var. picturatus Santschi, 1927c: 243.
- Type-material: syntype workers, syntype queens (numbers not stated).
- Type-locality: Algeria: Mascara (Cros), other syntypes Morocco: Marrakech (H. Vaucher), Tunisia: Ain Draham (F. Santschi).
- Type-depository: NHMB.
- [First available use of Messor barbarus st. minor var. picturata Santschi, 1921d: 69 (w.q.) ALGERIA, MOROCCO, TUNISIA; unavailable (infrasubspecific) name.]
- Santschi, 1939d: 71 (q.m.); Cagniant & Espadaler, 1998: 425 (m.).
- As unavailable (infrasubspecific) name: Emery, 1922c: 94; Emery, 1924a: 8.
- Subspecies of sublaeviceps: Santschi, 1927c: 243 (redescription); Santschi, 1929e: 142; Menozzi, 1934: 158; Santschi, 1939d: 71; Menozzi, 1940: 268; Finzi, 1940: 159.
- Subspecies of minor: Cagniant, 1968a: 143.
- Subspecies of medioruber: Cagniant, 1970a: 415.
- Status as species: Collingwood, 1985: 251; Bolton, 1995b: 256; Collingwood & Agosti, 1996: 320; Cagniant & Espadaler, 1998: 425; Cagnaint, 2006a: 197; Borowiec, L. 2014: 110; Barech, et al. 2020: 15.
- Distribution: Algeria, Kuwait, Libya, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia.
- Current subspecies: nominal plus maurus Santschi.

Description

References

Abdul-Rassoul, M.S., Ali, H.B. & Augul, R.SH. 2013. New Records of Unidentified Ants worker (Hymenoptera: Formicidae: Myrmicinae) stored in Iraqi Natural History Museum with key to Species. Adv. Biores., Vol 4 (2): 27-33.
Barech, G., Khaldi, M., Espadaler, X., Cagniant, H. 2020. Révision taxonomique du genre Messor (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) au Maghreb et description de Messor hodnii sp. n., une nouvelle espèce de fourmi trouvée en Algérie. Revue suisse de Zoologie 127(1) : 9-19 (doi:10.35929/RSZ.0002).
Borowiec, L. 2014. Catalogue of ants of Europe, the Mediterranean Basin and adjacent regions (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Genus (Wroclaw) 25(1-2): 1-340.
Cagniant, H. 1968a. Liste préliminaire de fourmis forestières d'Algérie. Résultats obtenus de 1963 à 1966. Bull. Soc. Hist. Nat. Toulouse 104: 138-147 (page 143, Subspecies of minor)
Cagniant, H. 1970a [1969]. Deuxième liste de fourmis d'Algérie récoltées principalement en forêt. (1re partie). Bull. Soc. Hist. Nat. Toulouse 105: 405-430 (page 415, Subspecies of medioruber)
Collingwood, C. A. 1985. Hymenoptera: Fam. Formicidae of Saudi Arabia. Fauna Saudi Arab. 7: 230-302 (page 251, Raised to species)
Collingwood, C. A. and D. Agosti. 1996. Formicidae (Insecta: Hymenoptera) of Saudi Arabia (part 2). Fauna Saudi Arabia. 15:300-385.
Santschi, F. 1921d. Formicides nouveaux de l'Afrique du Nord. Bull. Soc. Hist. Nat. Afr. Nord 12: 68-77 (page 69, First available use of Messor barbarus st. minor var. picturata; unavailable name.)
Santschi, F. 1927d. Revision des Messor du groupe instabilis Sm. (Hymenopt.). Bol. R. Soc. Esp. Hist. Nat. 27: 225-250 (page 243, worker, queen described)
Santschi, F. 1939d. Notes sur des Camponotus et autres fourmis de l'Afrique Mineure. Bull. Soc. Sci. Nat. Maroc 19: 66-87 (page 71, queen, male 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.
Cagniant, H and X. Espadaler, X. 1998 [1997]. Le genre Messor au Maroc (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Ann. Soc. Entomol. Fr. (n.s.) 33: 419-434
Cagniant, H. 1968. Liste preliminaire de fourmis forestieres d'Algerie. Resultats obtenus de 1963 a 1964. Bulletin de la Société d'Histoire Naturelle de Toulouse 104: 138-147
Cagniant, H., and X. Espadaler. "Le genre Messor au Maroc." Annales de la Société Entomologique de France (N.S.) 33 (4) (1998): 419-434.
Cagniant, H.. "Deuxième liste de fourmis d'Algérie récoltées principalement en forêt. (1re partie)." Bulletin de la Société d'Histoire Naturelle de Toulouse 105 (1970): 405-430.
Cagniant, H.. "Liste actualisee des fourmis du Maroc (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)." Myrmecologische Nachrichten 8 (2006): 193-200.
Cagniant, H.. "Liste préliminaire de fourmis forestières d'Algérie. Résultats obtenus de 1963 à 1966." Bulletin de la Societe d'Histoire Naturelle de Toulouse 104 (1968): 138-147.
Cagniant, H.. Les peuplements de fourmis des forêts algériennes: écologie, biocénotique, essai biologique. Universite de Toulouse, 1973.
Collingwood, C. A. and D. Agosti. 1996. Formicidae (Insects: Hymenoptera) of Saudi Arabia (Part 2) Fauna of Saudi Arabia 15: 300-385.
Collingwood, C. A., and Donat Agosti. "Formicidae (Insecta: Hymenoptera) of Saudi Arabia (Part 2)." Fauna of Saudi Arabia 15 (1996): 300-385.
Emery, C.. "Formiche della Cirenaica raccolte dal Dott. Enrico Festa e dal Prof. Filippo Silvestri." Bollettino della Società Entomologica Italiana 56 (1924): 6-11.
Finzi, B.. "Formiche della Libia." Memorie della Società Entomologica Italiana 18 (1940): 155-166.
Firouzi F., S. P. Rad, S. H. Nezhad, and D. Agosti. 2011. Four new records of ants from Iran. Zoology in the Middle East 52: 7178.
Menozzi C. 1934. Reperti mirmecofaunistici raccolti dal Prof. L di Caporiacco nelle oasi di Cufra e in altre localita del deserto Libico. Atti della Societa dei Naturalisti e Matematici di Modena (6)13(65): 153-166
Santschi F. 1929. Fourmis du Maroc, d'Algerie et de Tunisie. Bulletin et Annales de la Société Entomologique de Belge 69: 138-165.
Santschi, F. 1921. Formicides nouveaux de l'Afrique du Nord. Bulletin de la Société d'Histoire Naturelle de l'Afrique du Nord 12: 68-77
Santschi, F. 1927. Révision des Messor du groupe instabilis Sm. (Hymenopt.). Boletin de la Real Sociedad Española de Historia Natural 27: 225-250.
Santschi, F.. "Fourmis du Maroc, d'Algérie et de Tunisie." Bulletin et Annales de la Société Entomologique de Belgique (Bruxelles) 69 (1929): 138-165.
Santschi, F.. "Revision des Messor du groupe instabilis Sm. (Hymenopt.)." Boletín de la Real Sociedad española de Historia natural (Madrid) 27 (1927): 225-250.