Strumigenys lopotyle

Strumigenys lopotyle
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Hymenoptera
Family:	Formicidae
Subfamily:	Myrmicinae
Tribe:	Attini
Genus:	Strumigenys
Species:	S. lopotyle
Binomial name
	Strumigenys lopotyle; Brown, 1969 Specimen Labels

The few collections of this species were all from rainforest.

Identification

A member of the cygarix complex in the Strumigenys caniophanes-group.

Keys including this Species

Key to Strumigenys of East Asia

Distribution

Latitudinal Distribution Pattern

Latitudinal Range: -6.733329773° to -8.767°.


North Temperate	North Subtropical	Tropical	South Subtropical	South Temperate

Source: AntMaps

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists

Indo-Australian Region: New Guinea.

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

Explore Overview of Strumigenys biology

Strumigenys were once thought to be rare. The development and increased use of litter sampling methods has led to the discovery of a tremendous diversity of species. Many species are specialized predators (e.g. see Strumigenys membranifera and Strumigenys louisianae). Collembola (springtails) and other tiny soil arthropods are typically favored prey. Species with long linear mandibles employ trap-jaws to sieze their stalked prey (see Dacetine trap-jaws). Larvae feed directly on insect prey brought to them by workers. Trophallaxis is rarely practiced. Most species live in the soil, leaf litter, decaying wood or opportunistically move into inhabitable cavities on or under the soil. Colonies are small, typically less than 100 individuals but in some species many hundreds. Moist warm habitats and micro-habitats are preferred. A few better known tramp and otherwise widely ranging species tolerate drier conditions. Foraging is often in the leaf litter and humus. Workers of many species rarely venture above ground or into exposed, open areas. Individuals are typically small, slow moving and cryptic in coloration. When disturbed individuals freeze and remain motionless. Males are not known for a large majority of species.

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Castes

Nomenclature

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

lopotyle. Strumigenys lopotyle Brown, 1969a: 27, figs. 1-3 (w.q.) NEW GUINEA. See also: Bolton, 2000: 760.

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

Description

Worker

Bolton (2000) - TL 2.8-3.3, HL 0.74-0.86, HW 0.65-0.77, CI 87-90, ML 0.34-0.39, MI 44-46, SL 0.40-0.49, SI 58-64, PW 0.38-0.45, AL 0.76-0.90 (5 measured).

Mandible with a small preapical tooth. Dorsolateral margin of head in full-face view with 5 or more freely laterally projecting short stiff simple hairs, each arising from a small tubercle; anteriormost hair just in front of level of eye, the posteriormost on margin of occipital lobe. Cephalic dorsum with a pair of erect hairs at highest point of vertex and a transverse row along occipital margin. Dorsum of head finely irregularly rugulose and also with punctate sculpture. Promesonotum mid-dorsally longitudinally rugose but on each side, and on side of pronotum, with narrow but deep foveolate pits that are bordered by smooth rugulae. Propodeal dorsum transversely rugulose anteriorly, punctate posteriorly. Pleurae and side of propodeum sculptured. Pronotal humeral hair long, filiform and simple. Dorsal alitrunk with sparse erect simple hairs and fine simple ground-pilosity. Waist segments and first gastral tergite with simple standing hairs. Dorsal (outer) surfaces of middle and hind tibiae and basitarsi with long erect freely projecting hairs. Bullae of femoral glands very large; on hind femur length of bulla is about 0.50 X maximum length of femur. Propodeal teeth very small, reduced to a pair of denticles. Petiole node in dorsal and lateral view, except for its near-vertical anterior face, completely concealed by a massive and continuous overgrowth of very fine dense spongiform tissue. Postpetiole similarly covered, with only a small anteromedian part of the disc visible. Basigastral costulae minute, shorter than width of limbus.

The huge overgrowths of spongiform tissue on the petiole and postpetiole render lopotyle unmistakable. In profile the petiole node appears to be wearing a tall spongiform bonnet. The lateral surface of the node proper is invisible, as is the dorsum except for the extreme anteromedian part at the top of the ascending anterior face. The postpetiole dorsally has equally dense spongiform tissue and only a small portion of the disc remains exposed.

Type Material

Bolton (2000) - Holotype worker, paratype workers and queen, PAPUA NEW GUINEA: Lae, Didiman Creek, 27.iii.1955, nos. 690, 702, 716, lowl. rainforest (E. O. Wilson) (Museum of Comparative Zoology, Australian National Insect Collection) [examined].

Paratype, 3 workers, Didiman Creek, Lae, Papua New Guinea, Wilson,E.O., ANIC32-017705, Australian National Insect Collection.

References

Bolton, B. 2000. The ant tribe Dacetini. Memoirs of the American Entomological Institute. 65:1-1028. (page 760, redescription of worker)
Brown, W. L., Jr. 1969b. Strumigenys lopotyle species nov. Pilot Regist. Zool. Card No. 27. (page 27, worker, queen described)
Tang, K. L., Guénard, B. 2023. Further additions to the knowledge of Strumigenys (Formicidae: Myrmicinae) within South East Asia, with the descriptions of 20 new species. European Journal of Taxonomy 907, 1–144 (doi:10.5852/ejt.2023.907.2327).

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

Bolton, B. 2000. The Ant Tribe Dacetini. Memoirs of the American Entomological Institute 65
Brown W. L. J. 1969. Strumigenys lopotyle species nov. Pilot Register of Zoology. Card No. 27: 1-2.
CSIRO Collection
Janda M., G. D. Alpert, M. L. Borowiec, E. P. Economo, P. Klimes, E. Sarnat, and S. O. Shattuck. 2011. Cheklist of ants described and recorded from New Guinea and associated islands. Available on http://www.newguineants.org/. Accessed on 24th Feb. 2011.
Room P. M. 1975. Diversity and organization of the ground foraging ant faunas of forest, grassland and tree crops in Papua Nez Guinea. Aust. J. Zool. 23: 71-89.