Strumigenys hyphata

Strumigenys hyphata
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Hymenoptera
Family:	Formicidae
Subfamily:	Myrmicinae
Tribe:	Attini
Genus:	Strumigenys
Species:	S. hyphata
Binomial name
Strumigenys hyphata (Brown, 1953) Specimen Labels

P. F. Darlington took a worker of this species in leaf litter of a degraded rain forest tract at Utinga, near Belem, Para, Brazil (Brown 1964).

Identification

Bolton (2000) - A member of the Strumigenys hyphata-group. This distinctive species was described in detail by Brown (l953a), who tentatively placed it in the otherwise Nearctic ornata-group, “until the Neotropical fauna is much better known”, because of its remarkable clypeal pilosity. This pilosity immediately diagnoses hyphata and at first glance does seem similar to members of the ornata-group. However, as other aspects of their morphologies do not correspond at species-group level, and as the specialised hairs are restricted to the clypeus alone in the ornata-group and are very differently arranged and oriented, independent origins must be suspected. Brown (1953a) pointed out that hyphata was “distinct enough on several counts to warrant placement in a separate group”, and that course has been followed here.

Apart from the unique cephalic pilosity hyphata has a low basal lamella that extends to the posterior margin of the basal tooth, and has the three basal teeth subequal in size. Its scapes are narrow and subcylindrical, without flagellate or hook-shaped hairs. Flagellate hairs occur on the waist segments and first gastral tergite; those at the pronotal humeri and on the mesonotum arise from conspicuous tubercles.

Keys including this Species

• Key to Neotropical Strumigenys (as Pyramica)

Distribution

Latitudinal Distribution Pattern

Latitudinal Range: 4.091666667° to -14.5°.

North Temperate	North Subtropical	Tropical	South Subtropical	South Temperate

• Source: AntMaps

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists

Neotropical Region: Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Trinidad and Tobago (type locality), Venezuela.

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.

Nomenclature

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

• hyphata. Smithistruma (Smithistruma) hyphata Brown, 1953g: 110 (w.) TRINIDAD. Combination in Pyramica: Bolton, 1999: 1673; in Strumigenys: Baroni Urbani & De Andrade, 2007: 121. See also: Bolton, 2000: 198.

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

Description

Worker

TL 2.0-2.1, HL 0.56-0.60, HW 0.35-0.38, CI 60-65, ML 0.09-0.11, MI 15-17, SL 0.33-0.34, SI 89-94, PW 0.25-0.28, AL 0.56-0.62 (5 measured).

Clypeal dorsum, and anterior one-third of cephalic dorsum immediately behind clypeus, with numerous long wire-like, very broadly curved conspicuous hairs that are mostly slightly thickened apically. Clypeus with 6-7 pairs of these hairs; head immediately behind clypeus with 5-6 pairs. On anterior half of clypeus these hairs are directed anteriorly or anterolaterally from their bases, some project far beyond the clypeal margins. The hairs then curve broadly upward and back approximately toward their points of origin. Posteriorly on clypeus the hairs are longer and directed more vertically from their bases before arching toward the midline. A pair of even longer hairs arises from the frontal lobes and projects laterally far beyond the lateral margins of the head before arching upward and back toward the midline. The remaining cephalic pairs are directed posterolaterally or posteriorly from their bases and then pass through a broad upward and then anteromedial curve. Lateral margins of clypeus, especially posteriorly, with a few much shorter, simple to narrowly spatulate hairs that curve anteriorly. This characteristic pilosity very conspicuous in profile.

Type Material

Holotype worker and paratype worker, TRINIDAD: Northern, Range, Foothills N of Tunapuna, 25.v. 1935, no. 1 80 (N.A. Weber) (National Museum of Natural History, Museum of Comparative Zoology) [examined].

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).
• Baroni Urbani, C. & De Andrade, M.L. 2007. The ant tribe Dacetini: limits and constituent genera, with descriptions of new species. Annali del Museo Civico di Storia Naturale “G. Doria” 99:1-191.
• Bolton, B. 1999. Ant genera of the tribe Dacetonini (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). J. Nat. Hist. 3 33: 1639-1689 (page 1673, Combination in Pyramica)
• Bolton, B. 2000. The ant tribe Dacetini. Memoirs of the American Entomological Institute. 65:1-1028. (page 198, figs. 139, 180 redescription of worker)
• Brown, W. L., Jr. 1953f. The neotropical species of the ant genus Strumigenys Fr. Smith: group of smithii Forel. J. N. Y. Entomol. Soc. 61: 101-110 (page 110, worker described)
• Brown, W. L., Jr. 1953g. Revisionary studies in the ant tribe Dacetini. Am. Midl. Nat. 50: 1-137.
• Brown, W. L., Jr. 1964b. The ant genus Smithistruma: a first supplement to the World revision (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Transactions of the American Entomological Society. 89:183-200.
• Chaul, J.C.M. 2023. A new ant species of Strumigenys Smith, 1860 (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) from the Brazilian atlantic forest. Taxonomy 2023, 2, 221–231 (doi:10.3390/taxonomy3020016).
• 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).
• Guerrero, R.J., Fernandez, F., Escarraga, M.E., Perez-Pedraza, L.F., Serna, F., Mackay, M.P., Sandoval, V., Vergara, V., Suarez, D., Garcia, E.I., Sanchez, A., Meneses, A.D., Tocora, M.C., Sosa-Calvo, J. 2018. New records of myrmicine ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) for Colombia. Revista Colombiana de Entomología 44: 238-259 (DOI 10.25100/socolen.v44i2.7115).
• Ladino, N., Feitosa, R.M. 2022. Ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) of the Parque Estadual São Camilo, an isolated Atlantic Forest remnant in western Paraná, Brazil. ZOOLOGIA 39: e22001 (doi:10.1590/S1984-4689.v39.e22001).

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

• Bolton, B. 2000. The Ant Tribe Dacetini. Memoirs of the American Entomological Institute 65
• Brown W. L. 1964. The ant genus Smithistruma: a first supplement to the world revision (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Transactions of the American Entomological Society 89: 183-200.
• Brown W. L., Jr. 1953. Revisionary studies in the ant tribe Dacetini. Am. Midl. Nat. 50: 1-137.
• Fernández, F. and S. Sendoya. 2004. Lista de las hormigas neotropicales. Biota Colombiana Volume 5, Number 1.
• 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.
• Groc S., J. H. C. Delabie, F. Fernandez, M. Leponce, J. Orivel, R. Silvestre, Heraldo L. Vasconcelos, and A. Dejean. 2013. Leaf-litter ant communities (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in a pristine Guianese rainforest: stable functional structure versus high species turnover. Myrmecological News 19: 43-51.
• Kempf, W.W. 1972. Catalago abreviado das formigas da regiao Neotropical (Hym. Formicidae) Studia Entomologica 15(1-4).
• Pires de Prado L., R. M. Feitosa, S. Pinzon Triana, J. A. Munoz Gutierrez, G. X. Rousseau, R. Alves Silva, G. M. Siqueira, C. L. Caldas dos Santos, F. Veras Silva, T. Sanches Ranzani da Silva, A. Casadei-Ferreira, R. Rosa da Silva, and J. Andrade-Silva. 2019. An overview of the ant fauna (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) of the state of Maranhao, Brazil. Pap. Avulsos Zool. 59: e20195938.
• Silva T. S. R., and R. M. Feitosa. 2019. Using controlled vocabularies in anatomical terminology: A case study with Strumigenys (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Arthropod Structure and Development 52: 1-26.