Mycetophylax vallensis
Mycetophylax vallensis | |
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Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Class: | Insecta |
Order: | Hymenoptera |
Family: | Formicidae |
Subfamily: | Myrmicinae |
Tribe: | Attini |
Genus: | Mycetophylax |
Species: | M. vallensis |
Binomial name | |
Mycetophylax vallensis (Kusnezov, 1949) |
Identification
Distribution
Latitudinal Distribution Pattern
Latitudinal Range: -26.808285° to -26.808285°.
North Temperate |
North Subtropical |
Tropical | South Subtropical |
South Temperate |
- Source: AntMaps
Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists
Neotropical Region: Argentina (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
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Castes
Nomenclature
The following information is derived from Barry Bolton's Online Catalogue of the Ants of the World.
- vallensis. Cyphomyrmex daguerrei subsp. vallense Kusnezov, 1949d: 450, figs. 12-15 (w.) ARGENTINA.
- Raised to species: Kusnezov, 1957b: 11 (in key).
- Combination in Mycetophylax: Sosa-Calvo et al., 2017: 9.
- See also: Kempf, 1964d: 34.
Description
Kempf (1964) - The status of the present form is beset with problems that have no easy solution, without recourse to the types, if still available. I believe that Kusnezov was right when promoting vallensis (Kusnezov constantly spells vallense!) to full species level. As a matter of fact, Mycetophylax daguerrei is a significantly larger species with more undulated, mutually more approximated frontal carinae, scarcely prominent occipital lobe, longer scapes, armed epinotum, to mention just a few of the more obvious characters. M. vallensis is of smaller size, has more prominent occipital lobes, more broadly expanded frontal carinae which are scarcely constricted behind the frontal lobes. Its epinotum is unarmed and the scape does not project beyond the occipital lobes. It might he closely related with nemei, but in this form the postpetiole is extremely broad. The aberrant form, mentioned under lectus on a following page, might fall under this name. Indeed, this form includes a specimen from Tucumán (Kusnezov leg., n. 2339), which agrees in general characters with vallensis, but its lateral pronotal teeth are very low and the postpetiole is not cupuliform but broader. Short of settling all these doubts, I leave vallensis as a species inquirenda.
Type Material
Kempf (1964) - Seven workers, taken in Tafi del Valle, on the road to Santa Maria, Tucumán Province. The type locality is 2000 m above sea-level, its climate is temperate and relatively humid. The types appear to be lost.
References
- Albuquerque, E., Prado, L., Andrade-Silva, J., Siqueira, E., Sampaio, K., Alves, D., Brandão, C., Andrade, P., Feitosa, R., Koch, E., Delabie, J., Fernandes, I., Baccaro, F., Souza, J., Almeida, R., Silva, R. 2021. Ants of the State of Pará, Brazil: a historical and comprehensive dataset of a key biodiversity hotspot in the Amazon Basin. Zootaxa 5001, 1–83 (doi:10.11646/zootaxa.5001.1.1).
- Kempf, W. W. 1964d. A revision of the Neotropical fungus-growing ants of the genus Cyphomyrmex Mayr. Part I: Group of strigatus Mayr (Hym., Formicidae). Stud. Entomol. 7: 1-44 (page 34, see also)
- Kusnezov, N. 1949d. El género Cyphomyrmex (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) en la Argentina. Acta Zool. Lilloana 8: 427-456 (page 450, figs. 12-15 worker described)
- Kusnezov, N. 1957e. Nuevas especies de hormigas (Hymenoptera, Formicidae). Rev. Soc. Urug. Entomol. 2: 7-18 (page 11, Raised to species (in key))
- 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
- Kempf W. W. 1978. A preliminary zoogeographical analysis of a regional ant fauna in Latin America. 114. Studia Entomologica 20: 43-62.