Pheidole caliginosa

AntWiki: The Ants --- Online
Pheidole caliginosa
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hymenoptera
Family: Formicidae
Subfamily: Myrmicinae
Tribe: Attini
Genus: Pheidole
Species: P. caliginosa
Binomial name
Pheidole caliginosa
Longino, 2019

Pheidole caliginosa CASENT0631248 p.jpg

Pheidole caliginosa CASENT0631248 d.jpg

This species occurs in lowland to lower montane wet forest. Minor and major workers recruit to ground baits, and workers occur in Winkler samples of sifted litter and rotten wood. A few minor workers have been collected in beating samples.

Identification

Longino (2019) - Minor: face smooth and shining; head rounded behind; promesonotal groove present, distinctly impressed; pronotum entirely smooth and shining; katepisternum foveolate; propodeal spines about half length of posterior face of propodeum; gaster smooth and shining; mesosomal and gastral dorsum, tibiae with abundant erect dark amber setae; color dark brown to black.

Major: inner hypostomal teeth widely spaced, acicular; scape base terete; face mostly smooth and shining, with longitudinal carinulae between eye and antennal fossa, a few longitudinal carinulae medial to frontal carinae; propodeal spines about one third length of posterior face of propodeum; gastral dorsum smooth and shining; side of head with erect setae; mesosomal and gastral dorsum, tibiae with abundant erect dark amber setae.

Measurements, minor worker: HW 0.75, HL 0.88, SL 1.10, EL 0.18, WL 1.16, PSL 0.11, PTW 0.18, PPW 0.26, CI 86, SI 147, PSLI 14, PPI 145 (n=2).

Measurements, major worker: HW 1.46, HL 1.51, SL 1.08, EL 0.23, WL 1.46, PSL 0.13, PTW 0.31, PPW 0.42, CI 96, SI 74, PSLI 9, PPI 137 (n=2).

This species is similar to Pheidole hector and Pheidole hectornitida. Compared to both species, the head of the minor worker is more rounded behind, with less developed occipital carina. Both it and P. hector have dark amber setae.

Distribution

Latitudinal Distribution Pattern

Latitudinal Range: 9.48686° to 9.48141°.

 
North
Temperate
North
Subtropical
Tropical South
Subtropical
South
Temperate

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists

Neotropical Region: Costa Rica.

Distribution based on AntMaps

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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.
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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.
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Biology

Castes

Worker

Minor

Images from AntWeb

Pheidole caliginosa CASENT0646459 h.jpgPheidole caliginosa CASENT0646459 p.jpgPheidole caliginosa CASENT0646459 d.jpgPheidole caliginosa CASENT0646459 l.jpg
ParatypeWorker (minor). Specimen code CASENT0646459. Photographer Michele Esposito, uploaded by California Academy of Sciences. Owned by CAS, San Francisco, CA, USA.

Nomenclature

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

  • caliginosa. Pheidole caliginosa Longino, 2019: 29, fig. 55 (w.) COSTA RICA.

Type Material

  • HOLOTYPE: 1 major worker, Costa Rica, San José: Cerro Plano, 9.48141 -83.96276 ±100 m, 1070 m, 6-Jul-2015, ridgetop cloud forest, at bait (ADMAC, Ba-E-06-1-03-11) [MUCR, unique specimen identifier CASENT0631248].
  • PARATYPES: major, minor workers: same data as holotype [MCZC, MUCR]; same data except Ranchos Tinamu, 9.48686 -83.95215 ±100 m, 720 m, 9-Jul-2015, montane wet forest, near pasture, at bait (ADMAC, Ba-E-07-1-03-03) [CAS]; Ba-E-07-1-03-04 [JTLC, DZUP]; Ba-E-07-1-03-08 [JTLC, USNM].

Description

see the identification section above

Etymology

Latin for dark.

References

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

  • Longino J. T. 2019. Pheidole (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) of Middle American wet forest. Zootaxa 4599: 1-126