Temnothorax cerastarum

Temnothorax cerastarum
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Hymenoptera
Family:	Formicidae
Subfamily:	Myrmicinae
Tribe:	Crematogastrini
Genus:	Temnothorax
Species group:	graecus
Species:	T. cerastarum
Binomial name
Temnothorax Satala, Demetriou, Georgiadis & Borowiec, 2024

A single nest of this species was observed under a moderately large stone inside a mixed pine and cedar forest, in mountains at an altitude of 1138 m.

Photo Gallery

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  Salata et al. (2024), Figs. 29, 30. Holotype worker of Temnothorax cerastarum. 29, dorsal. 30, lateral (scale bar = 1 mm).
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  Salata et al. (2024), Fig. 31. Holotype worker head of Temnothorax cerastarum (scale bar = 0.5 mm).
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  Salata et al. (2024), Figs. 32, 33. Gyne of Temnothorax cerastarum. 32, dorsal. 33, lateral (scale bar = 1 mm).
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  Salata et al. (2024), Fig. 34. Gyne head of Temnothorax cerastarum (scale bar = 0.5 mm).

Identification

Temnothorax cerastarum is a member of the T. graecus group. It has uniformly yellow antennae and in this character is similar to Temnothorax evagorae and Temnothorax oreades, while the fourth species of this group, T. aeolius, well differs in partly brown to black antennal club. Temnothorax cerastarum differs from T. oreades and T. evagorae in the less sculptured head with a great part of frontal and occipital area smooth and shiny, longer, needle-shaped propodeal spines with mean PSLI 0.297, and longer antennal scapus with mean SI1 0.933 and SI2 0.785. The last yellow Cypriot species, Temnothorax akrotiriensis, differs from the pale form of T. cerastarum in a more sculptured head with a distinctly microreticulate background between the prominent sculpture and thus dull frontal part of the head while in T. cerastarum this background sculpture is diffused or absent thus frontal part of the head is distinctly shiny. Temnothorax akrotiriensis has a very narrow dark band at the end of the first gastral tergite, which occupies at most its ¼ posterior surface, while in T. cerastarum this band usually occupies more than half the surface of the tergite. Temnothorax cerastarum was collected in a mountain pine forest at an altitude of 1138 m while T. akrotiriensis was collected only in lowland open habitats from the sea coast to an altitude of 156 m.

Keys including this Species

• Key to the Cypriot Temnothorax species

Distribution

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  Salata et al. (2024), Fig. 64. Distribution in Cyprus Temnothorax cerastarum (upper map) and T. evagorae + T. oreades (bottom map).

Latitudinal Distribution Pattern

Latitudinal Range: 34.99° to 34.99°.

North Temperate	North Subtropical	Tropical	South Subtropical	South Temperate

• Source: Salata et al., 2024

Distribution based on type material

Cyprus (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.

Nomenclature

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

• cerastarum. Temnothorax cerastarum Satala et al., 2024: 36, figs. 29-34, 64 (w.q.) CYPRUS.

Type Material

• Holotype: worker (pin) “CYPRUS, Paphos, 1138 m | Cedar Valley loc. 2 | 34.99092 / 32.68846 | 22 IV 2022, L. Borowiec” (MNHW).
• Paratypes (1 gyne, 41 workers, pin): the same data as for holotype (MNHW, JDC, ZMUA).

References

• Salata, S., Demetriou, J., Georgiadis, C., Borowiec, L. 2024. The genus Temnothorax Mayr, 1861 (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in Cyprus. Zootaxa 5434(1), 1-69 (doi:10.11646/zootaxa.5434.1.1).