.jpg){kind=logo}
Polyrhachis limitis
| Polyrhachis limitis | |
|---|---|
| |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Hymenoptera |
| Family: | Formicidae |
| Subfamily: | Formicinae |
| Tribe: | Camponotini |
| Genus: | Polyrhachis |
| Subgenus: | Myrma |
| Species group: | alexisi |
| Species: | P. limitis |
| Binomial name | |
| Polyrhachis limitis Santschi, 1939
| |
Nothing is known about the biology of Polyrhachis limitis.
Identification
Rigato (2016) - An alexisi group species identifiable by: pronotum and propodeum laterally marginate, petiole quadrispinose, head oval, with moderately convex sides, and eyes somewhat slightly breaking the head outline in full face view.
Bolton (1973) - Originally described as a race of Polyrhachis alexisi, limitis is now considered to be a good species and appears to be more closely related to Polyrhachis latharis than to the species with which it was first associated. The main differences responsible for the decision to raise limitis to specific rank were the presence of margination on the propodeum and the differences in sculpturation between it and alexisi.
Keys including this Species
- Key to Afrotropical Polyrhachis species
- Key to Afrotropical Polyrhachis species (Bolton 1973, OUTDATED)
Distribution
Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists
Afrotropical Region: Democratic Republic of Congo (type locality), United Republic of Tanzania.
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.
- limitis. Polyrhachis (Pseudocyrtomyrma) alexisi st. limitis Santschi, 1939c: 12 (w.) DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO. Raised to species: Bolton, 1973b: 350.
Unless otherwise noted the text for the remainder of this section is reported from the publication that includes the original description.
Description
Worker
Bolton (1973) - TL 6.5, HL 1.59, HW 1.29, CI 81, SL 1.63, SI 126, PW 1.33, MTL 1.67.
Anterior clypeal margin produced into a shallow, rectangular lobe medially, the lobe bluntly dentate on each side. Sides of head more or less straight and somewhat convergent in front of the eyes, convex and rounding into the occipital margin behind. Eyes convex, situated well up on the sides but breaking the outline of the sides in full-face view. Alitrunk anteroposteriorly compressed and with a swollen appearance. Pronotum convex, armed with a pair of spines, marginate from the spines to a point about half way between their bases and the promesonotal suture; the latter distinct. Mesonotum not marginate, the dorsum rounding into the sides, separated from the propodeum by a very weakly marked metanotal groove. Propodeum unarmed, weakly marginate laterally and posteriorly, the sides not greatly expanded beyond the lateral marginations in dorsal view. Propodeal declivity deep and shallowly concave. Petiole armed with four spines, the dorsal pair noticeably longer than the laterals but narrower and separated by a distance about twice as great as the length of one spine. Anterior face of the first gastral segment concave medially.
Erect hairs absent from all dorsal surfaces of the head and body except the clypeus and the apex of the gaster. Pubescence very short and sparse, most easily seen on the gaster and the appendages.
Clypeus, declivity of propodeum, petiole and gaster finely reticulate. Dorsal surfaces of head, mesonotum and propodeum longitudinally striate-rugose, the pronotum more irregularly so, tending to a rugoreticulum laterally. Sides of pronotum and the mesopleuron reticulate-rugose, the sides of the propodeum longitudinally striate-rugose.
Rigato (2016) - HL 1.34, HW 1.16, CI 87, SL 1.47, SI 127, FW 0.37, FI 32, PW 1.14, WL 1.66, HTL 1.40.
Type Material
Holotype worker, DEMOCRATIC REP. of the CONGO: Pale (Gérard) (Naturhistorisches Museum, Basel) [examined]. In the original description Santschi begins with the symbol for female but later refers to the specimen as a worker, which is the correct caste.
References
- Bolton, B. 1973b. The ant genus Polyrhachis F. Smith in the Ethiopian region (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Bulletin of the British Museum (Natural History) Entomology. 28:283-369. (page 350, Raised to species)
- Rigato, F. 2016. The ant genus Polyrhachis F. Smith in sub-Saharan Africa, with descriptions of ten new species. (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Zootaxa 4088: 1–50.
- Santschi, F. 1939c. Trois notes sur quelques fourmis du Musée Royal d'Histoire Naturelle de Belgique. Bull. Mus. R. Hist. Nat. Belg. 15(1 14: 1-15 (page 12, worker described)
References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics
- Rigato F. 2016. The ant genus Polyrhachis F. Smith in sub-Saharan Africa, with descriptions of ten new species. (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Zootaxa 4088: 1-50.