Mycetophylax snellingi

Mycetophylax snellingi
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Hymenoptera
Family:	Formicidae
Subfamily:	Myrmicinae
Tribe:	Attini
Genus:	Mycetophylax
Species:	M. snellingi
Binomial name
	Mycetophylax snellingi; (Mackay, W.P. & Serna, 2010) Specimen Labels

The type series was collected in a leaf litter extraction from a wet montane habitat.

Identification

Mackay and Serna (2010) - The worker is a small (total length 2 mm) ferrugineous red specimen. The mandibles have seven teeth, the spiniform paraclypeal teeth on the clypeus are markedly well developed; the frontal lobes do not reach the inner borders of the eyes (frontal view of head). The frontovertexal comers form auricle-like structures; the scape is short, and does not reach the posterior margin of the scrobe. The mid pronotal process is angulate, the lateral pronotal tubercles are poorly developed. The anterior mesonotal tubercles are conical and posterior mesonotal tubercles approximately the same size. The propodeum is rounded posteriorly and without angles or spines. The subpetiolar tooth is well-developed and sharp, dorsally the petiole extends over the base of the anterior part of the postpetiole, which has two longitudinal elevated regions, the posterior margin of the postpetiole is nearly straight; the first opisthogastral tergum is without ridges or processes; all femora are swollen ventrally, with carinae, the posterior femur has a well-developed ventral lamina.

Erect hairs are sparse, present on the mandibles, apex of the scape, ventral surfaces of the legs, ventral and posterior surfaces of the gaster; appressed hairs are abundant on the dorsum of the first opisthogastral tergum.

All surfaces dull, except the region along base of mandibular teeth which is smooth and shiny.

Mycetophylax snellingi would key to Mycetophylax faunulus in Kempf's key (1964). It can be easily distinguished as the anterior mesonotal tubercle is relatively small, as compared to the greatly enlarged anterior mesonotal tubercle of M. faunulus. Additionally, the posterodorsal edge of the petiole of M. faunulus does not extend over the anterior face of the petiole as it does in M. snellingi. Mycetophylax faunulus also lacks the erect hairs on the frontal lobes. Although it would key to M. faunulus, the two species do not appear to be morphologically similar.

Distribution

Latitudinal Distribution Pattern

Latitudinal Range: 10.3085492° to 9.8712602°.


North Temperate	North Subtropical	Tropical	South Subtropical	South Temperate

Source: AntMaps

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists

Neotropical Region: Costa Rica, Panama (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.

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

Explore Fungus Growing

For additional details see Fungus growing ants.

A handful of ant species (approx. 275 out of the known 15,000 species) have developed the ability to cultivate fungus within their nests. In most species the fungus is used as the sole food source for the larvae and is an important resource for the adults as well. Additionally, in a limited number of cases, the fungus is used to construct part of the nest structure but is not as a food source.

These fungus-feeding species are limited to North and South America, extending from the pine barrens of New Jersey, United States, in the north (Trachymyrmex septentrionalis) to the cold deserts in Argentina in the south (several species of Acromyrmex). Species that use fungi in nest construction are known from Europe and Africa (a few species in the genera Crematogaster, Lasius).

The details of fungal cultivation are rich and complex. First, a wide variety of materials are used as substrate for fungus cultivating. The so-called lower genera include species that prefer dead vegetation, seeds, flowers, fruits, insect corpses, and feces, which are collected in the vicinity of their nests. The higher genera include non leaf-cutting species that collect mostly fallen leaflets, fruit, and flowers, as well as the leafcutters that collect fresh leaves from shrubs and trees. Second, while the majority of fungi that are farmed by fungus-feeding ants belong to the family Lepiotaceae, mostly the genera Leucoagaricus and Leucocoprinus, other fungi are also involved. Some species utilise fungi in the family Tricholomataceae while a few others cultivate yeast. The fungi used by the higher genera no longer produce spores. Their fungi produce nutritious and swollen hyphal tips (gongylidia) that grow in bundles called staphylae, to specifically feed the ants. Finally, colony size varies tremendously among these ants. Lower taxa mostly live in inconspicuous nests with 100–1000 individuals and relatively small fungus gardens. Higher taxa, in contrast, live in colonies made of 5–10 million ants that live and work within hundreds of interconnected fungus-bearing chambers in huge subterranean nests. Some colonies are so large, they can be seen from satellite photos, measuring up to 600 m3.

Based on these habits, and taking phylogenetic information into consideration, these ants can be divided into six biologically distinct agricultural systems (with a list of genera involved in each category):

Nest Construction

A limited number of species that use fungi in the construction of their nests.

some Crematogaster
some Lasius

Lower Agriculture

Practiced by species in the majority of fungus-feeding genera, including those thought to retain more primitive features, which cultivate a wide range of fungal species in the tribe Leucocoprineae.

Coral Fungus Agriculture

Practiced by species in the Apterostigma pilosum species-group, which cultivate fungi within the Pterulaceae.

some Apterostigma

Yeast Agriculture

Practiced by species within the Cyphomyrmex rimosus species-group, which cultivate a distinct clade of leucocoprineaceous fungi derived from the lower attine fungi.

some Cyphomyrmex

Generalized Higher Agriculture

Practiced by species in several genera of non-leaf-cutting "higher attine" ants, which cultivate a distinct clade of leucocoprineaceous fungi separately derived from the lower attine fungi.

Leaf-Cutter Agriculture

A subdivision of higher attine agriculture practiced by species within several ecologically dominant genera, which cultivate a single highly derived species of higher attine fungus.

Note that the farming habits of Mycetagroicus (4 species) are unknown. Also, while species of Pseudoatta (2 species) are closely related to the fungus-feeding genus Acromyrmex, they are social parasites, living in the nests of their hosts and are not actively involved in fungus growing. ‎

Castes

Nomenclature

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

snellingi. Cyphomyrmex snellingi Mackay, W.P. & Serna, 2010: 47, figs. 7-12 (w.) PANAMA.
- Combination in Mycetophylax: Sosa-Calvo et al., 2017: 11.

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

Description

Mackay and Serna 2010. Figures 7-13.

Worker

HL 0.71-0.74, HW 0.58, SL 0.48-0.50, EL 0.09-0.10, EW 0.08, WL 0.85-0.86. Indices: CI 78-81, SI 64-70, OI 82-86. Mandible with 7 teeth; spiniform paraclypeal teeth very well developed (length 0.07 mm), frontal carinae relatively narrowly spaced, not reaching preocular carina which forms mesiad margin of scrobe; eyes extending past sides of head, with about 20 ommatidia; scrobe greatly extending posteriorly, forming auricle-like structures; scapes not reaching posterior margin of scrobe; tubercles on pronotum poorly developed; anterior and posterior mesonotal tubercles moderately well developed and approximately same size, anterior tubercle with slighter broader base; dorsopropodeum shorter that posteropropodeum, propodeum without spines or angles; subpetiolar tooth sharp and well developed, petiole with two distinct, longitudinal lateral lobes, dorsum of posterior face extending over anterior part of postpetiole; postpetiole with longitudinal depressed region in dorsum of node, outlined by two elongated elevated areas; dorsal surface of gaster flat, bordered laterally by slightly elevated longitudinal areas; all femora with carinae along ventral posterior border, that on posterior femur more developed and forming lamina.

Few erect hairs on mandibles, anteclypeus and frontal lobes, remainder of hairs simple and appressed, located mostly on head and especially gaster.

All surfaces except mandiblular teeth and anterior edge of clypeus dull.

Type Material

Holotype worker (Museum of Comparative Zoology), 1 paratype worker (William and Emma Mackay Collection), Panama, Cerro Campana, 950 m, 5-vi-1995, R. Anderson #17833.

Etymology

Named in honor of the memory of Roy Snelling, recalling a pleasant visit to the Los Angeles County Museum of Natural History in May of 2007 where we spent time with Roy, Gordon Snelling, Brian Brown, and Weiping Xie.

References

Mackay, W. P. and F. Serna. 2010. Two new species of the strigatus species complex of the ant genus Cyphomyrmex (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) from Costa Rica and Panamá. Journal of Hymenoptera Research. 19:44-50.
Sosa-Calvo, J., JesÏovnik, A., Vasconcelos, H.L., Bacci, M. Jr., Schultz, T.R. 2017. Rediscovery of the enigmatic fungus-farming ant "Mycetosoritis" asper Mayr (Hymenoptera: Formicidae): Implications for taxonomy, phylogeny, and the evolution of agriculture in ants. PLoS ONE 12: e0176498 (DOI 10.1371/journal.pone.0176498).

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

Longino J. T. L., and M. G. Branstetter. 2018. The truncated bell: an enigmatic but pervasive elevational diversity pattern in Middle American ants. Ecography 41: 1-12.
Longino J. T., and R. K. Colwell. 2011. Density compensation, species composition, and richness of ants on a neotropical elevational gradient. Ecosphere 2(3): 16pp.
Longino J. et al. ADMAC project. Accessed on March 24th 2017 at https://sites.google.com/site/admacsite/
MacKay W. P., and F. Serna. 2010. Two new species of the strigatus species complex of the ant genus Cyphomyrmex (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) from Costa Rica and Panamá. Journal of Hymenoptera Research 19: 44-50.