Solenopsis altinodis

Solenopsis altinodis
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Hymenoptera
Family:	Formicidae
Subfamily:	Myrmicinae
Tribe:	Solenopsidini
Genus:	Solenopsis
Species complex:	wasmannii
Species:	S. altinodis
Binomial name
	Solenopsis altinodis; Forel, 1912

From Wheeler, W. M. 1921), This species is found with Tachigalia but in the ground and not in petioles. In addition, it can often be found with Coccidotrophus and Eunausibius and destroys the colonies of these organisms. Additionally, this species can be found in ridge forest litter in Costa Rica and was collected at an elevation of 110m in Colombia. It was foraging on the vegetation in Venezuela.

Identification

A New World thief ant that is a member of the wasmannii species complex.

Pacheco and Mackay (2013) – Worker - This species is bicolored with a golden yellow body and a dark brown gaster. The eye is relatively large with 10-12 ommatidia The anterior border of the clypeus is lacking teeth. This species can• be easily recognized by the shape of the petiole. The petiole (side view) is approximately as wide as tall with the anterior edge rounded and lower than the posterior edge.

This species may be confused with Solenopsis bicolor (which overlaps in distribution) based on the anterior clypeal margin and bicolored coloration. However, it can be separated as the petiolar node is unique to this species and thus dissimilar in shape to that of C. bicolor where the petiole is narrow in side view. Additionally, C. bicolor has long erect hairs on all body surfaces and often 0.240 mm in total length on the mesosoma, as compared to the much shorter (0.100 mm) setae present on S. altinodis.

Keys

Keys including this Species

Distribution

Latitudinal Distribution Pattern

Latitudinal Range: 9.266667° to 6.684167°.


North Temperate	North Subtropical	Tropical	South Subtropical	South Temperate

Source: AntMaps

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists

Neotropical Region: Colombia, Costa Rica, French Guiana, Guyana, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, Venezuela (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

Castes

Images from AntWeb


Lectotype of Solenopsis altinodis. Worker. Specimen code casent0908808. Photographer Z. Lieberman, uploaded by California Academy of Sciences.	Owned by MHNG, Geneva, Switzerland.

Known only from the worker caste.

Nomenclature

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

altinodis. Solenopsis altinodis Forel, 1912g: 10 (w.) VENEZUELA, TRINIDAD.
- Type-material: lectotype worker (by designation of Pacheco & Mackay, 2013: 108), 5 paralectotype workers.
- Type-locality: lectotype Venezuela: Zig Zag (A.Forel) (by restriction of Pacheco & Mackay, 2013: 108); paralectotypes with same data.
- [Note: other original syntype locality: Trinidad: (no further data) (Urich).]
- Type-depository: MHNG.
- Status as species: Wheeler, W.M. 1916d: 324; Wheeler, W.M. 1921f: 154 (redescription); Emery, 1922e: 198; Wheeler, W.M. 1922c: 8; Kempf, 1961b: 508; Ettershank, 1966: 139; Kempf, 1972a: 232; Bolton, 1995b: 386; Pacheco & Mackay, 2013: 107 (redescription); Fernández & Serna, 2019: 815.
- Distribution: Colombia, Costa Rica, Guyana, Trinidad, Venezuela.
- altipunctata. Solenopsis altipunctata Gotzek, et al. 2007: 4, fig. 2. Nomen nudum.

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

Description

Worker

Pacheco and Mackay (2013) - Measurements (n=6). TL 1.56-1.80 (1.7); HL 0.444-0.522 (0.483); HW 0390-0.450 (0.410); EL 0.060-0.072 (0.065); ED 0.054; SL 0.276-0.312 (0.292); FSL 0.120; CI 81.3-87.8 (84.9); SI 58.8-62.7 (60.5); PL 0.132-0.168 (0.152); PW 0.096-0.120 (0.111); PI 125.0-147.0 (137.0); PPL 0.120; PPW 0.144-0.156 (0.150); PPI 76.9-83.3 (80.1); WL 0.312-0.360 (0.339); PSL 0.030-0.042 (0.036); PSW 0.024.

Eye relatively large (approximately 10 ommatidia); minor segments of funiculus relatively long; clypeal teeth absent; clypeal carinae extend anteriorly, then abruptly turn inward, passing along anterior margin of clypeus; mesosoma deeply impressed at metanotal suture; area between two faces of propodeum nearly angulate, two faces approximately equal in length; petiole approximately as long from point of dorsum of anterior peduncle, as height from same point to apex, anterior edge rounded, lower than posterior edge, petiole laterally compressed when viewed from above, being narrower anteriorly.

Entire body covered with coarse, erect hairs, approximately 0.1 mm in length.

Type Material

Pacheco and Mackay (2013) - Venezuela, Zig Zag, (lectotype worker [here designated] (Musee d'Histoire Naturelle Genève) and 5 paralectotype workers MHNG).

References

Forel, A. 1912h. Formicides néotropiques. Part IV. 3me sous-famille Myrmicinae Lep. (suite). Mém. Soc. Entomol. Belg. 20: 1-32 (page 10, worker described)
Franco, W., Ladino, N., Delabie, J.H.C., Dejean, A., Orivel, J., Fichaux, M., Groc, S., Leponce, M., Feitosa, R.M. 2019. First checklist of the ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) of French Guiana. Zootaxa 4674, 509–543 (doi:10.11646/zootaxa.4674.5.2).
Pacheco, J.A. & Mackay, W.P. 2013. The systematics and biology of the New World thief ants of the genus Solenopsis (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Edwin Mellen Press, Lewiston, New York. 501 pp.
Wheeler, W. M. 1921f. The Tachigalia ants. Zoologica (N. Y.) 3: 137-168 (page 154, see also)

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

Achury R., and A.V. Suarez. 2017. Richness and composition of ground-dwelling ants in tropical rainforest and surrounding landscapes in the Colombian Inter-Andean valley. Neotropical Entomology https://doi.org/10.1007/s13744-017-0565-4
Ettershank G. 1966. A generic revision of the world Myrmicinae related to Solenopsis and Pheidologeton (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Aust. J. Zool. 14: 73-171.
Fernández, F. and S. Sendoya. 2004. Lista de las hormigas neotropicales. Biota Colombiana Volume 5, Number 1.
Forel A. 1912. Formicides néotropiques. Part IV. 3me sous-famille Myrmicinae Lep. (suite). Mémoires de la Société Entomologique de Belgique. 20: 1-32.
Franco W., N. Ladino, J. H. C. Delabie, A. Dejean, J. Orivel, M. Fichaux, S. Groc, M. Leponce, and R. M. Feitosa. 2019. First checklist of the ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) of French Guiana. Zootaxa 4674(5): 509-543.
INBio Collection (via Gbif)
Johnson R. Personnal Database. Accessed on February 5th 2014 at http://www.asu.edu/clas/sirgtools/resources.htm
Kempf W. W. 1961. A survey of the ants of the soil fauna in Surinam (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Studia Entomologica 4: 481-524.
Kempf, W.W. 1972. Catalago abreviado das formigas da regiao Neotropical (Hym. Formicidae) Studia Entomologica 15(1-4).
Weber N. A. 1938. The food of the giant toad, Bufo marinus (L.), in Trinidad and British Guiana with special reference to the ants. Annals of the Entomological Society of America 31: 499-503.
Wheeler W. M. 1921. The Tachigalia ants. Zoologica (New York) 3: 137-168.
Wheeler W. M. 1922. The ants of Trinidad. American Museum Novitates 45: 1-16.
Wheeler, William Morton. 1916. Ants Collected in Trinidad by Professor Roland Thaxter, Mr. F. W. Urich, and Others. Bulletin of the Museum of Comparitive Zoology at Harvard University. 40(8):322-330