Tetramorium caucasicum

Tetramorium caucasicum
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Hymenoptera
Family:	Formicidae
Subfamily:	Myrmicinae
Tribe:	Crematogastrini
Genus:	Tetramorium
Species:	T. caucasicum
Binomial name
	Tetramorium caucasicum; Wagner, Arthofer, Seifert, Muster, Steiner & Schlick-Steiner, 2017

A species typically found in pastures and steppic meadows.

Identification

A member of the Tetramorium caespitum species complex. See Wagner et al. (2017) and https://webapp.uibk.ac.at/ecology/tetramorium/ for keys.

Distribution

Caucasus: Southern Russia, Georgia, and Armenia.

Latitudinal Distribution Pattern

Latitudinal Range: 43.7° to 39.125°.


North Temperate	North Subtropical	Tropical	South Subtropical	South Temperate

Source: AntMaps

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists

Palaearctic Region: Armenia (type locality), Azerbaijan, Georgia (type locality), Russian Federation.

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

Wagner et al. (2017) - Less thermophilic than most other species of complex, TAS of seven sites 13.5 ± 2.8 °C [10.2, 18.2] and different from all species except Tetramorium indocile and Tetramorium impurum. Often above timberline; typical habitats are pastures and steppic meadows.

Adult sexuals in nests on 2 August (n = 1).

Castes

Nomenclature

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

caucasicum. Tetramorium caucasicum Wagner, et al. 2017: 117, fig. 16 (w.m.) RUSSIA, GEORGIA, ARMENIA.

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

Description

Worker

Larger than most other species of complex, CS = 757 ± 44 [706, 839] μm. Dark brown to blackish.

Head strongly elongate, CL / CW = 1.027 ± 0.021 [0.987, 1.052]. Eye medium-sized, EYE / CS = 0.172 ± 0.005 [0.162, 0.178]. Scape moderately long, SLd / CS = 0.779 ± 0.015 [0.749, 0.798]. Mesosoma moderately long and moderately wide, ML / CS = 1.160 ± 0.022 [1.131, 1.211], MW / CS = 0.637 ± 0.015 [0.612, 0.670].

Promesonotal dorsum convex, metanotal groove shallow. – Head dorsum and occiput with longitudinal costae and costulae. Postoculo-temporal area of head with rather many costae and costulae, POTCos = 8.71 ± 1.44 [6.17, 10.63]. Mesosoma dorsum longitudinally rugulose, lateral side of propodeum with moderately pronounced smooth and shiny area, Ppss = 45.0 ± 20.2 [16.4, 80.4]. Dorsum of petiolar node smooth or with sculpture. General surface appearance on average moderate smooth and shiny compared with other species. – Connected stickman-like or reticulate microsculpture: small units scattered over 1st gastral tergite, MC1TG = 14.47 ± 1.81 [11.64, 17.33]. – Some workers with long c-shaped, crinkly, or sinuous hairs on ventral head posterior to buccal cavity.

Male

Paramere structure belongs to impurum-like form: rounded ventral paramere lobe without any sharp corner in dorsal or ventral view but with clear division of ventral and dorsal paramere lobes, visible by deep emargination between lobes in posterior view. Sharp corner at end of ventral lobe in posterior view.

Type Material

River Bashil valley (Russia), 43.211° N, 42.987° E, 2206 m a.s.l., leg. Z.M. Yusupov, 18.VI.2009.

All type material from one nest, labeled "RUS: 43.211° N, 42.987° E River Bashil valley, 2206 m S slope, timberline, under stone Z.M.Yusupov 2009.06.18-17372". Holotype worker and two paratype workers in Senckenberg Naturkundemuseum Görlitz (Germany). Two paratype workers in Museum of Comparative Zoology, Cambridge, Massachusetts (USA), two in Natural History Museum in London (UK), two in Natural History Museum Basel (Switzerland), one in museum of Nature South Tyrol (Bozen, Italy), one in Tiroler Landesmuseum (Hall, Austria), two in Natural History Museum in Vienna (Austria), two in Budapest Hungarian Natural History Museum (Hungary), and two in Schmalhausen Institute of Zoology Kiev (Ukraine). Morphometric data of holotype in μm: CL = 714, CW = 691, dAN = 205, EL = 131, EW = 97, FL = 270, HFL = 563, MC1TG = 13.5, ML = 798, MPPL = 240, MPSP = 300, MPST = 183, MtpW = 338, MW = 433, PEH = 243, PEL = 157, PEW = 216, PLSP = 151, PLST = 171, PnHL = 183, PoOc = 286, POTCos = 8.5, PPH = 259, PPL = 111, Ppss = 57, PPW = 274, PreOc = 177, RTI = 289, SLd = 546, SPST = 134, SPWI = 185.

Etymology

Named after its distribution area, the Caucasus.

References

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

Wagner H. C., W. Arthofer, B. Seifert, C. Muster, F. M. Steiner, and B. C. Schlick-Steiner. 2017. Light at the end of the tunnel: Integrative taxonomy delimits cryptic species in the Tetramorium caespitum complex (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Myrmecological News 25: 95-129.