Messor syriacus
Messor syriacus | |
---|---|
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Class: | Insecta |
Order: | Hymenoptera |
Family: | Formicidae |
Subfamily: | Myrmicinae |
Tribe: | Stenammini |
Genus: | Messor |
Species group: | instabilis |
Species complex: | semirufus |
Species: | M. syriacus |
Binomial name | |
Messor syriacus Tohmé, G., 1969 |
Pashaei Rad et al. (2018) found this species in Iran on the ground in moderate to low rainfall areas. Salata et al. (2023) report that this is a thermophilous species, noted from low to mid altitudes, with most records from the seacoast to 400 m. The highest sites were in agricultural habitat with terraced crops at an altitude of 1325 m. Prefers sunny areas like dirt roadsides, salt lakes coasts, dry riverbanks, maquis and luminous pine forests with Mediterranean bushes, gravel areas on riverbanks and sunny rock with xerothermic meadow. Unlike the other two species of Messor known from Cyprus, it has not been observed in cities or in touristy beaches. Nests directly in the ground, workers penetrate small areas around the nest’s entrance.
Identification
Collingwood and Agosti (1996) - HW 1.7-2.3; EL/HW 0.24-0.28. This species has large eyes and a well-developed psammophore. The propodeum is rounded in profile, not angulate.
Salata et al. (2023) - Messor syriacus belongs to the Messor instabilis species-group (sensu Santschi (1927)).
Messor syriacus belongs to the complex of species with a small body size (HL < 2.3 mm and HW < 2.5 mm), bicolored body with completely or partly reddish mesosoma and entirely or predominantly black head and gaster, postpetiole not or only slightly wider than the petiolar node, and lack or presence of very sparse and short setosity on the first gastral tergite. In the Mediterranean Basin such combinations of characters share Messor laboriosus, Messor mediosanguineus, Messor minor calabricus, Messor rufus and Messor syriacus. Messor laboriosus differs in a strongly angulate propodeum often forming an obtuse propodeal spine and presence of sparse erect setae on the whole surface of the first gastral tergite; M. rufus differs in its bicolored head (gena and clypeus broadly yellow to red, the occipital area with a pale spot) and presence of sparse erect setae on the whole surface of the first gastral tergite; M. mediosanguineus differs in presence of a lobiform, obtuse propodeal spines on propodeum; M. minor calabricus differs in rounded in profile propodeum in major workers and never completely red mesosoma, this species also is the most geographically separated from M. syriacus (occurs in southern Italy). Small major workers of Messor intermedius with completely black head are similar to M. syriacus but differ in an obtuse propodeal angle, lack of erect setae on the first gastral tergite and presence of at most four erect setae on the occipital margin of the head.
Keys including this Species
Distribution
Latitudinal Distribution Pattern
Latitudinal Range: 37.049722° to 25.366667°.
North Temperate |
North Subtropical |
Tropical | South Subtropical |
South Temperate |
- Source: AntMaps
Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists
Afrotropical Region: Saudi Arabia.
Palaearctic Region: Armenia, Cyprus, Iran, Iraq, 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. |
Biology
Castes
Nomenclature
The following information is derived from Barry Bolton's Online Catalogue of the Ants of the World.
- syriacus. Messor syriacus Tohmé, G. 1969: 9.
- Type-material: holotype worker.
- Type-locality: Syria: Damas (= Damascus) (G. de Kerville).
- Type-depository: NHMB.
- [First available use of Messor minor st. laboriosus var. syriacus Santschi, 1927c: 241 (w.m.) SYRIA; unavailable (infrasubspecific) name.]
- Tohmé, G. 1969: 9 (m.); Tohmé, G. & Tohmé, H. 1981: 146 (q.m.).
- As unavailable (infrasubspecific) name: Santschi, 1927d: 247.
- Subspecies of minor: Arnol'di, 1977b: 1640 (in key); Arakelian, 1994: 37.
- Status as species: Tohmé, G. & Tohmé, H. 1981: 145; Collingwood, 1985: 252; Kugler, J. 1988: 257; Bolton, 1995b: 257; Collingwood & Agosti, 1996: 322; Vonshak, et al. 2009: 43; Kiran & Karaman, 2012: 21; Borowiec, L. 2014: 113; Tohmé, G. & Tohmé, 2014: 135; Khalili-Moghadam, et al. 2019: 177.
- Distribution: Iran, Israel, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Turkey.
Type Material
Salata & Borowiec (2019): syntype (w.): M. aralocaspius | laboriosus | v. syriacus Sanschi || TYPE || Syrie | Damas. | G. de Kerville || Sammlung | Dr. F. Santschi || Kairouan || ANTWEB | CASENT0913178 (NHMB).
Taxonomic Notes
Salata et al. (2023) - Messor syriacus was described from Syria, Damas (= Damascus) and later recorded also from Iran, Israel, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, and eastern Türkiye (Borowiec 2014). Populations from Iran and Saudi Arabia slightly differ from populations of more western and northern distribution and maybe represent another cryptic species. However, this statement needs verification based on molecular data. Cypriot records of M. intermedius, M. meridionalis and M. wasmanni most likely refer to M. syriacus.
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.
- Arakelian, G. R. 1994. Fauna of the Republic of Armenia. Hymenopterous insects. Ants (Formicidae). Erevan: Gitutium, 153 pp. (page 37, Subspecies of minor)
- Arnol'di, K. V. 1977b. Review of the harvester ants of the genus Messor (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) in the fauna of the USSR. Zool. Zh. 5 56: 1637-1648 (page 1640, Subspecies of minor)
- 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., Salata, S. 2020. Review of ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) from Jordan. Annals of the Upper Silesian Museum in Bytom, Entomology 29 (online 2): 1-26 (doi:10.5281/zenodo.3733156).
- Collingwood, C. A. 1985. Hymenoptera: Fam. Formicidae of Saudi Arabia. Fauna Saudi Arab. 7: 230-302 (page 252, Revived status as species)
- Collingwood, C. A. and D. Agosti. 1996. Formicidae (Insecta: Hymenoptera) of Saudi Arabia (part 2). Fauna Saudi Arabia. 15:300-385.
- Khalini-Moghadam, A., Borowiec, L., Nemati, A. 2019. New records of ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) from the Chaharmahal va Bakhtiari Province of Iran with taxonomic comments. Polish Journal of Entomology 88: 163–182 (DOI 10.2478/pjen-2019-0013).
- 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).
- Salata, S., Lapeva-Gjonova, A., Georgiadis, C., Borowiec, L. 2023. Review of the Messor semirufus complex (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) in Greece. ZooKeys 1185, 105–142 (doi:10.3897/zookeys.1185.111484).
- Santschi, F. 1927d. Revision des Messor du groupe instabilis Sm. (Hymenopt.). Bol. R. Soc. Esp. Hist. Nat. 27: 225-250 (page 241, First available use of Messor minor st. laboriosus var.syriacus; unavailable name.)
- Tohmé, G. 1969a. Description d'espèces nouvelles de fourmis au Liban (Hymenoptera Formicoidea). Publ. Univ. Liban. Sect. Sci. Nat. 7: 1-15 (page 9, worker, male described)
- 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 146, subspecies of minor; 145, Revived status as species)
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.
- Collingwood C. A. 1985. Hymenoptera: Fam. Formicidae of Saudi Arabia. Fauna of Saudi Arabia 7: 230-302.
- Khalili-Moghadam A., L. Borowiec, and A. Nemati. 2019. New records of ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) from the Chaharmahal va Bakhtiari Province of Iran with taxonomic comments. Polish Journal of Entomology 88 (2): 163–182.
- 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.. "Revision des Messor du groupe instabilis Sm. (Hymenopt.)." Boletín de la Real Sociedad española de Historia natural (Madrid) 27 (1927): 225-250.
- Tohme G. 1996. Formicidae. Etude de la diversité biologique n° 4 . Ministère de lAgriculture 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.
- Vonshak M., and A. Ionescu-Hirsch. 2009. A checklist of the ants of Israel (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Israel Journal of Entomology 39: 33-55.