Brachymyrmex australis

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Brachymyrmex australis
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hymenoptera
Family: Formicidae
Subfamily: Formicinae
Tribe: Myrmelachistini
Genus: Brachymyrmex
Species: B. australis
Binomial name
Brachymyrmex australis
Forel, 1901

Brachymyrmex australis casent0911596 p 1 high.jpg

Brachymyrmex australis casent0911596 d 1 high.jpg

Specimen Labels

Synonyms

Some specimens have been found under stones and among leaf litter. The type material of the synonomized Brachymyrmex longicornis was collected from orchids.

At a Glance • Limited invasive  

Identification

Ortiz-Sepulveda et al. (2019) - Brachymyrmex australis is very similar in morphology to Brachymyrmex aphidicola, Brachymyrmex minutus, and Brachymyrmex termitophilus, because all these species have a mesonotum that does not bulge dorsally above the pronotum in lateral view, their bodies are smooth, shiny and yellowish, and their eyes are positioned on the cephalic midline. However, Brachymyrmex australis differs from B. aphidicola by somewhat shorter scapes, although they still reach to the posterior margin of the head or surpass it by a length equal to or smaller than the maximal diameter of the eye; it differs from B. minutus by having a well-marked mesometanotal suture and two erect hairs on the pronotum and two on the mesonotum; finally, it has scattered pubescence on the gaster whereas that of B. termitophilus is dense.

Keys including this Species

Distribution

Latitudinal Distribution Pattern

Latitudinal Range: 20.55° to -34.604°.

   
North
Temperate
North
Subtropical
Tropical South
Subtropical
South
Temperate

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists

Malagasy Region: Mauritius.
Neotropical Region: Argentina (type locality), Bahamas, Brazil (type locality), Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guatemala, Guyana, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay.

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

Images from AntWeb

Brachymyrmex australis usnment00757156 h 1 high.jpgBrachymyrmex australis usnment00757156 p 1 high.jpgBrachymyrmex australis usnment00757156 d 1 high.jpgBrachymyrmex australis usnment00757156 l 1 high.jpg
Syntype of Brachymyrmex australisWorker. Specimen code usnment00757156. Photographer Z. Lieberman, uploaded by California Academy of Sciences. Owned by MHNG, Geneva, Switzerland.

Queen

Images from AntWeb

Brachymyrmex longicornis casent0619183 h 1 high.jpgBrachymyrmex longicornis casent0619183 p 1 high.jpgBrachymyrmex longicornis casent0619183 d 1 high.jpgBrachymyrmex longicornis casent0619183 l 1 high.jpg
Queen (alate/dealate). Specimen code casent0619183. Photographer Ryan Perry, uploaded by California Academy of Sciences. Owned by JTLC.

Nomenclature

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

  • australis. Brachymyrmex minutus r. australis Forel, 1901d: 302 (w.) BRAZIL (Rio Grande do Sul).
    • Type-material: lectotype worker (by designation of Ortiz-Sepúlveda, et al. 2019: 468), 1 paralectotype worker.
    • Type-locality: lectotype Brazil: Pelotas (Gensterblum); paralectotype with same data.
    • Type-depository: MHNG.
    • [Note: original syntype series was received from Wasmann, therefore syntypes perhaps also NHMM.]
    • Status as species: Santschi, 1922d: 260; Santschi, 1923b: 662; Emery, 1925b: 41; Borgmeier, 1927c: 140; Kempf, 1972a: 38; Bolton, 1995b: 81; Fernández & Ortiz-Sepúlveda, 2019: 728; Ortiz-Sepúlveda, et al. 2019: 468 (redescription).
    • Senior synonym of curta: Ortiz-Sepúlveda, et al. 2019: 468.
    • Senior synonym of longicornis: Ortiz-Sepúlveda, et al. 2019: 468.
    • Distribution: Argentina, Bahamas, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guatemala, Guyana, Mauritius, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay.
  • curta. Brachymyrmex australis var. curta Santschi, 1922d: 260 (q.m.) ARGENTINA (Córdoba), URUGUAY.
    • Type-material: syntype queens, syntype males (numbers not stated).
    • [Notes (i): only queens and males were described by Santschi, 1922d: 260 (date of publication (31).xii.1922); workers were described later by Santschi, 1923b: 663 (date of publication 12.iv.1923), but were noted there as “Var. curta n. var.”; (ii) Ortiz-Sepúlveda, et al. 2019: 468, cite 17w, 2q, 7m syntypes NHMB.]
    • Type-locality: Argentina: Córdoba, Alta Gracia (C. Bruch).
    • [Note: type-locality citeded by Santschi, 1923b: 663, “Argentine: Córdoba, Tanti Viejo (Durione, type)” is secondary and redundant.]
    • Type-depository: NHMB.
    • [Also described as new by Santschi, 1923b: 663 (w.).]
    • Subspecies of australis: Emery, 1925b: 41; Santschi, 1931e: 281; Kempf, 1972a: 38; Zolessi, et al. 1988: 6; Bolton, 1995b: 82.
    • Junior synonym of australis: Ortiz-Sepúlveda, et al. 2019: 468.
  • longicornis. Brachymyrmex longicornis Forel, 1907e: 9 (w.) BRAZIL (Rio Grande do Sul).
    • Type-material: syntype workers (number not stated).
    • [Note: Ortiz-Sepúlveda, et al. 2019: 468, cite 2w syntypes MHNG.]
    • Type-locality: Brazil: Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre (on orchids, intercepted in plant quarantine at Hamburg, Germany).
    • Type-depository: MHNG.
    • Forel, 1912i: 62 (q.).
    • Status as species: Forel, 1908b: 64; Forel, 1912i: 62; Forel, 1913l: 245; Forel, 1914d: 288; Bruch, 1914: 227; Forel, 1915c: 361; Bruch, 1916: 348; Santschi, 1923b: 667; Emery, 1925b: 42; Borgmeier, 1927c: 142; Kusnezov, 1953b: 339; Kempf, 1972a: 40; Bolton, 1995b: 82.
    • Junior synonym of australis: Ortiz-Sepúlveda, et al. 2019: 468.

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

Description

Worker

Ortiz-Sepulveda et al. (2019) - Lectotype worker HL1 0.37; HL2 0.27; HL3 0.10; HW 0.29; SL 0.29; EL 0.10; WL 0.35; PnL n.a.; PnW 0.23; ML 0.08; MW 0.17; Indices CI 78.95; SI1 100.00; SI2 107.14; OI1 33.33; OI2 26.31. Additional material (n = 13). HL1 0.32–0.54; HL2 0.21–0.38; HL3 0.08–0.15; HW 0.29–0.53; SL 0.26–0.48; EL 0.08–0.14; WL 0.29–0.55; PnL 0.08–0.20; PnW 0.21–0.32; ML 0.06–0.11; MW 0.14– 0.20; Indices CI 82.61–97.09; SI1 89.09–104.54; SI2 114.29– 135.29; OI1 15.38–30.91; OI2 19.35–28.33.

Head. Slightly longer than wide in full face view; posterior cephalic margin slightly concave. Dorsum of the head with scattered appressed hairs. Clypeus with a rounded anterior margin and five long, erect hairs of which a single, usually conspicuous hair is near the anterior margin, two hairs are in mediolateral position, and two more near the toruli; other hairs on the clypeus are markedly shorter and appressed or decumbent. Toruli surpassing the posterior clypeal margin in oblique anterodorsal view. The scapes extend beyond the posterior margin of the head by a length equal to or smaller than the maximal diameter of the eye; they typically have appressed, sometimes decumbent, but never erect hairs. Three inconspicuous ocelli. Eyes on the cephalic midline, with 7–14 ommatidia along their maximal diameter.

Mesosoma. Typically with two erect hairs on the pronotum and two on the mesonotum. The mesonotum is not inflated and it does not bulge dorsally above the pronotum in lateral view. Metanotal groove absent or shallow and narrower than the diameter of the metathoracic spiracles. Metathoracic spiracles in dorsolateral position, not protruding, and usually touching both the mesometanotal and propodeal sutures. Dorsum of the propodeum flat or weakly convex and ~ 1/3th of the length of the propodeal slope. Propodeal spiracles circular, positioned ventrally of the posterior propodeal margin slightly posterior of the middle of the propodeal slope. Legs with appressed and scattered hairs. Petiole short and inclined forward.

Gaster. With scattered pubescence and scattered long suberect hairs.

Color and sculpture. Body smooth and shiny, uniform yellowish in color

Type Material

Ortiz-Sepulveda et al. (2019) - Lectotype worker (Musee d'Histoire Naturelle Genève: USNMENT00757156) and paralectotype worker (MHNG: USNMENT00758102; here designated): two workers [examined]. BRAZIL: Rio Grande do Sul: Pelotas.

References

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

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