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Talaridris
| Talaridris | |
|---|---|
| |
| Talaridris mandibularis | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Hymenoptera |
| Family: | Formicidae |
| Subfamily: | Myrmicinae |
| Tribe: | Attini |
| Genus: | Talaridris Weber, 1941 |
| Type species | |
| Talaridris mandibularis | |
| Diversity | |
| 1 species (Species Checklist, Species by Country)
| |
A monotypic genus. Talaridris mandibularis is a small litter dwelling tropical rainforest ant that, like the similar Rhopalothrix, is not well collected. It has been found in litter and humus.
| At a Glance | • Monotypic |
Identification
Worker and female: Antennae with 7 segments total. Very similar to Rhopalothrix, but with somewhat different mandibles. These are elongate as in Rhopalothrix, but curve dorsad from the plane of the head, finally broadening into an obliquely oriented apical masticatory border with acute and rounded teeth. There are inconspicuous denticles arranged along the inner dorsal margins of the blades also. Of the apical series, the largest acute teeth, one at each end of the series, may correspond to the long, acute subapical and ventral apical teeth forming the "apical fork" of Rhopalothrix, in which case the intervening teeth would represent elaborations of the two intercalary teeth or denticles of Rhopalothrix. In fact, the distinction between these two genera is relatively trivial, and when more species of Rhopalothrix become known, it may well prove advantageous to merge Talaridris with it. (Brown and Kempf 1960)
Distribution
Known from northern South America and Trinidad.
Distribution and Richness based on AntMaps
Species by Region
Number of species within biogeographic regions, along with the total number of species for each region.
| Afrotropical Region | Australasian Region | Indo-Australian Region | Malagasy Region | Nearctic Region | Neotropical Region | Oriental Region | Palaearctic Region | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Species | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Total Species | 2851 | 1736 | 3047 | 932 | 840 | 4391 | 1767 | 2925 |
Biology
Life History Traits
- Mean colony size: ? (Greer et al., 2021)
- Compound colony type: not parasitic (Greer et al., 2021)
- Nest site: hypogaeic (Greer et al., 2021)
- Diet class: predator (Greer et al., 2021)
- Foraging stratum: subterranean/leaf litter (Greer et al., 2021)
Castes
Males have yet to be collected.
Morphology
Worker Morphology
Explore: Show all Worker Morphology data or Search these data. See also a list of all data tables or learn how data is managed.
• Eyes: 2-10 ommatidia • Pronotal Spines: absent • Mesonotal Spines: absent • Propodeal Spines: dentiform • Petiolar Spines: absent • Caste: none or weak • Sting: present • Metaplural Gland: present • Cocoon: absent
Phylogeny
| Myrmicinae |
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See Phylogeny of Myrmicinae for details.
Nomenclature
The following information is derived from Barry Bolton's Online Catalogue of the Ants of the World.
- TALARIDRIS [Myrmicinae: Basicerotini]
- Talaridris Weber, 1941a: 184. Type-species: Talaridris mandibularis, by original designation.
- Talaridris junior synonym of Rhopalothrix: Baroni Urbani & De Andrade, 1994: 32.
- Talaridris revived from synonymy: Bolton, 1994: 105.
- Talaridris junior synonym of Basiceros: Baroni Urbani & De Andrade, 2007: 88.
Taxonomic Notes
All taxa of genera Eurhopalothrix, Octostruma, Protalaridris, Rhopalothrix and Talaridris were combined in Basiceros, sensu Baroni Urbani & De Andrade, 2007: 90-93. Synonymy of all basicerotine genera under Basiceros, by Baroni Urbani & De Andrade, 2007: 88, is incorrect procedure as Rhopalothrix has priority. Basicerotine genus-rank taxonomy documented in Bolton, 2003: 183-185, is retained.
Description
Worker
Size small. Head angular, broader than long, occipital margin concave, occipital corners angulate, sides in front of corners expanded as lobes, sides converging from thence to mandibles; anterior clypeal margin concave, frontal lobes small; antennal scrobes deep, complete and receiving distal part of scape and funiculus; eyes minute, situated on upper margin of middle antennal scrobes on posterior half of head; mandibles porrect, arcuate, narrow in front view but expanded apically so that the two mandibles meet to form a basket, expanded apical portion with a series of irregular teeth, denticles and lobes, basal portion of mandibles with a series of denticles medially; antennae 7-jointed, scapes broad, strongly elbowed and attached by a distinct pedicel, terminal funicular joint long and narrow, as long or longer than the preceding funicular joints taken together. Pro-mesonotum in profile not markedly impressed, meso-epinotal impression marked; thorax about two-thirds as broad through pronotum as its length to the epinotal spines; epinotum with distinct basal and declivous surfaces, spines large and triangular, continued downward as a lamella on either side. Petiole strongly pedunculate and with a distinct node, mid-ventrally with a small tooth near the epinotum and directed forwards, postpetiole from above transverse, anterior margin concave, posterior medial margin produced as two gibbosities. Gaster ovate, first gastric segment concave anteriorly and covering about three-fourths of the gaster; sting short, exserted. Legs moderately long and slender. Opaque, punctate. Pilosity of coarse squamate hairs on the antennal scapes and body; scale-like or clavate hairs on appendages more numerous. Ferruginous.
Queen
Similar to the worker. Size small but distinctly larger than the worker. Winged. Eyes and ocelli large and prominent, the eyes located before the distal end of the antennal scrobes and partially dividing them; mandibles as in worker; general configuration of head as in worker; epinotal spines and lamellae as in worker. Opaque, punctate, with squamate and clavate hairs as in worker. Ferruginous.
Etymology
From Talapos, a wicker-basket, sometimes a wicker-basket for fowls, and iopis, the "knowing or provident one," in allusion to the remarkable mandibles which come together at their apices in somewhat the form of a basket. According to Dr. W. M. Wheeler, Hesiod referred to the ant, probably specifically the harvesting ant (Messar), as the "knowing or provident one."
References
- Baroni Urbani, C.; De Andrade, M. L. 1994. First description of fossil Dacetini ants with a critical analysis of the current classification of the tribe (Amber Collection Stuttgart: Hymenoptera, Formicidae. VI: Dacetini). Stuttg. Beitr. Naturkd. Ser. B ( (page 32, Talaridris in Myrmicinae, Dacetini; Talaridris as junior synonym of Rhopalothirx)
- Bolton, B. 1994. Identification guide to the ant genera of the world. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 222 pp. (page 105, Talaridris as genus; Talaridris in Myrmicinae, Basicerotini)
- Bolton, B. 1998a. Monophyly of the dacetonine tribe-group and its component tribes (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Bull. Nat. Hist. Mus. Entomol. Ser. 67: 65-78 (page 67, Talaridris as genus; Talaridris in Myrmicinae, Basicerotini)
- Bolton, B. 2003. Synopsis and Classification of Formicidae. Mem. Am. Entomol. Inst. 71: 370pp (page 185, Talaridris in Myrmicinae, Basicerotini)
- Boudinot, B.E. 2019. Hormigas de Colombia. Cap. 15. Clave para las subfamilias y generos basada en machos. Pp. 487-499 in: Fernández, F., Guerrero, R.J., Delsinne, T. (eds.) 2019d. Hormigas de Colombia. Bogotá: Universidad Nacional de Colombia, 1198 pp.
- Brown, W. L., Jr. 1948e. A preliminary generic revision of the higher Dacetini (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Trans. Am. Entomol. Soc. 74: 101-129 (page 102, Talaridris in Myrmicinae, Dacetini)
- Brown, W. L., Jr. 1949h. Revision of the ant tribe Dacetini: IV. Some genera properly excluded from the Dacetini, with the establishment of the Basicerotini new tribe. Trans. Am. Entomol. Soc. 75: 83-96 (page 94, Talaridris in Myrmicinae, Basicerotini)
- Brown, W. L., Jr. 1973b. A comparison of the Hylean and Congo-West African rain forest ant faunas. Pp. 161-185 in: Meggers, B. J., Ayensu, E. S., Duckworth, W. D. (eds.) Tropical forest ecosystems in Africa and South America: a comparative review. Wash (page 185, Talaridris provisional junior synonym of Rhopalothirx)
- Brown, W. L., Jr.; Kempf, W. W. 1960. A world revision of the ant tribe Basicerotini. Stud. Entomol. (n.s.) 3: 161-250 (page 241, Talaridris in Myrmicinae, Basicerotini)
- Cantone S. 2018. Winged Ants, The queen. Dichotomous key to genera of winged female ants in the World. The Wings of Ants: morphological and systematic relationships (self-published).
- Donisthorpe, H. 1943h. A list of the type-species of the genera and subgenera of the Formicidae. [concl.]. Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist. 11(10): 721-737 (page 730, Talaridris in Myrmicinae, Dacetini)
- Fernandez, F., Guerrero, R.J., Sánchez-Restrepo, A.F. 2021. Sistemática y diversidad de las hormigas neotropicales. Revista Colombiana de Entomología 47, 1–20 (doi:10.25100/socolen.v47i1.11082).
- Kempf, W. W. 1972b. Catálogo abreviado das formigas da regia~o Neotropical. Stud. Entomol. 15: 3-344 (page 246, Talaridris in Myrmicinae, Basicerotini)
- Weber, N. A. 1941a. Four new genera of Ethiopian and Neotropical Formicidae. Ann. Entomol. Soc. Am. 34: 183-194 (page 183, 184, Talaridris in Myrmicinae, Dacetini [Dacetonini])