Trichomyrmex perplexus

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Trichomyrmex perplexus
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hymenoptera
Family: Formicidae
Subfamily: Myrmicinae
Tribe: Crematogastrini
Genus: Trichomyrmex
Species group: scabriceps
Species: T. perplexus
Binomial name
Trichomyrmex perplexus
(Radchenko, 1997)

Monomorium perplexum casent0281551 p 1 high.jpg

Monomorium perplexum casent0281551 d 1 high.jpg

Specimen Labels

Sharaf et al. (2016) - Granivorous species. It prefers open and dry habitats including pastures, shores of artificial lakes, seashore with phrygana, abandoned gardens, but also found in limestone gorges with Platanus trees, open pine forests and open oak woodlands. Nests are built directly in the ground and under stones. Lowland species, the highest locality in Greece was recorded at about 570 m a.s.l. (L. Borowiec pers. comm.). Pashaei Rad et al. (2018) found this species in Iran in a pitfall trap in a moderate rainfall montane area.

Identification

Sharaf et al. (2016) - Trichomyrmex abyssinicus and Trichomyrmex perplexus can be distinguished from other Arabian species by the vertical ellipse or slit propodeal spiracle. Trichomyrmex abyssinicus is similar to T. perplexus but can be separated from it by the convex promesonotum outline, the distinctly longer propodeal dorsum, and the irregularly rugulose propodeum, petiole and postpetiole.

Keys including this Species

Distribution

Sharaf et al. (2016) - Trichomyrmex perplexus was described from Armenia and recorded from United Arab Emirates (Collingwood et al. 2011), the Middle East including Jordan, and Syria (Borowiec 2014), Eastern Europe and from the Mediterranean Basin including Greece, Turkey, and Cyprus (Borowiec 2014). It is common in the Aegean Islands, Crete, Macedonia, Dodecanese Islands, Ionian Islands, and Thessaly (Borowiec & Salata 2012, 2013; L. Borowiec pers. comm.).

This is an uncommon species known from most Greek provinces except Epirus and here is recorded as new to Thrace (Borowiec et al., 2022).

Latitudinal Distribution Pattern

Latitudinal Range: 41.3247° to 25.07°.

   
North
Temperate
North
Subtropical
Tropical South
Subtropical
South
Temperate

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists

Afrotropical Region: United Arab Emirates.
Palaearctic Region: Armenia (type locality), Azerbaijan, Cyprus, Greece, Iran, Russian Federation, Türkiye.

Distribution based on AntMaps

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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.
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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.
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Biology

Castes

Images from AntWeb

Monomorium perplexum casent0281552 h 1 high.jpgMonomorium perplexum casent0281552 p 1 high.jpgMonomorium perplexum casent0281552 d 1 high.jpgMonomorium perplexum casent0281552 l 1 high.jpg
Worker. Specimen code casent0281552. Photographer Estella Ortega, uploaded by California Academy of Sciences. Owned by CAS, San Francisco, CA, USA.

Nomenclature

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

  • perplexus. Monomorium perplexum Radchenko, 1997f: 213, figs. 1-11 (w.q.m.) ARMENIA, GEORGIA, GREECE (Crete I.).
    • Type-material: holotype worker, 58 paratype workers, 1 paratype queen, 2 paratype males.
    • Type-locality: holotype Armenia: env. Megry, vil. Legvaz, no. 324-86, 20.vi.1986 (A. Radchenko); paratypes: 20 workers with same data, 10 workers with same data but no. 328-86, 6 workers Armenia: Ekhegnadzor, Malyshka, 22.v.1988 (G. Arakelian), 2 workers Georgia: Lekistskhali, 28.ix1960, no. 439 (T. Zhyzhylashvili), 2 males with same data as last but no. 437, 1 worker, 1 queen with same data as last but no. 436, 7 workers Georgia: Eldarskaya plane, 8.iv.1962, no. 107 (T. Zhyzhylashvili), 1 worker Greece: Crete, Amari, 4.v.1906 (L. Biró), 9 workers Greece: Crete, Heracleon, 12.v.1906, (L. Biró), 2 workers Transcaucasus, Taribana (no collector’s name).
    • Type-depositories: SIZK (holotype); MIZW, SIZK, ZMUM (paratypes).
    • Combination in Trichomyrmex: Ward, et al. 2015: 76.
    • Status as species: Paknia, et al. 2010: 33; Legakis, 2011: 15; Collingwood, et al. 2011: 435; Borowiec, L. & Salata, 2012: 518; Kiran & Karaman, 2012: 21; Borowiec, L. & Salata, 2013: 358; Borowiec, L. 2014: 123; Lebas, et al. 2016: 398; Sharaf, Salman, et al. 2016a: 24 (redescription); Borowiec, L. & Salata, 2018: 8; Salata & Borowiec, 2018c: 50; Bračko, 2019: 173; Borowiec, L. & Salata, 2020: 20.
    • Distribution: Azerbaijan, Cyprus, Armenia, Georgia, Greece, Iran, Jordan, Syria, Turkey, United Arab Emirates.

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

Description

Worker

Sharaf et al. (2016) - HL 0.69–1.37; HW 0.62–1.38; EL 0.15; SL 0.52–0.87; ML 0.83–1.37 (Radchenko 1997). Large worker: TL 3.50–4.89; HL 1.03–1.31; HW 1.01–1.43; SL 0.70–0.91; EL 0.15–0.16; ML 1.05–1.40; PW 0.55–0.66; PTL 0.22–0.33; PTW 0.15–0.21; PPL 0.18–0.23; PPW 0.20–0.23; CI 107–109; EI 11–14; SI 64 (CASENT0281551, CASENT0914153). Small worker: TL 2.15; HL 0.55; HW 0.54; SL 0.42; EL 0.11; ML 0.68; PW 0.31; PTL 0.13; PTW 0.10; PPL 0.13; PPW 0.13; CI 98; EI 20; SI 78 (CASENT0281552).

Head. Slightly longer than broad (CI 98–109) with concave posterior margin and convex sides; anterior clypeal margin shallowly concave; scapes short, when laid back from their insertions failing to reach posterior margin of head.

Mesosoma. Convex in profile; promesonotal outline flat; metanotal groove impressed; propodeum angular in profile or with short blunt rounded denticle; propodeal dorsum as long as declivity in profile; propodeal declivity with feeble longitudinal impression.

Petiole. Peduncle long; petiolar node low, triangular and rounded in profile.

Postpetiole. Node low and rounded in profile.

Pilosity. Underside of head with numerous straight short hairs not forming a psammophore; cephalic surface with abundant subdecumbent pubescence; posterior margin of head with numerous long curved hairs; mesosoma, petiole and postpetiole with many projecting hairs, varying in length; gastral pilosity numerous and sparse.

Sculpture. Head smooth and shining, with sparse fine punctures; mandibles longitudinally rugulose; promesonotum and mesonotum smooth and shining, rest of mesosoma densely punctulate-reticulate.

Colour. Head, mesosoma, petiole and postpetiole orange red to reddish brown, gaster dark brown, legs brownish or reddish yellow.

References

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

  • Borowiec L. 2014. Catalogue of ants of Europe, the Mediterranean Basin and adjacent regions (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Genus (Wroclaw) 25(1-2): 1-340.
  • Borowiec L., and S. Salata. 2012. Ants of Greece - Checklist, comments and new faunistic data (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Genus 23(4): 461-563.
  • Borowiec L., and S. Salata. 2013. Ants of Greece – additions and corrections (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Genus (Wroclaw) 24(3-4): 335-401.
  • Borowiec L., and S. Salata. 2017. Ants of the Peloponnese, Greece (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Polish Journal of Entomology 86: 193-236.
  • Borowiec L., and S. Salata. 2018. Notes on ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) of Samos Island, Greece. Annals of the Upper Silesian Museum in Bytom Entomology 27: 1-13.
  • Collingwood C.A., D.Agosti, M.R. Sharaf, and A. van Harten. 2011. Order Hymenoptera, family Formicidae. Arthropod fauna of the UAE, 4: 405–474
  • Czechowski W., A. Radchenko, W. Czechowska and K. Vepsäläinen. 2012. The ants of Poland with reference to the myrmecofauna of Europe. Fauna Poloniae 4. Warsaw: Natura Optima Dux Foundation, 1-496 pp
  • Dubovikoff D. A., and Z. M. Yusupov. 2018. Family Formicidae - Ants. In Belokobylskij S. A. and A. S. Lelej: Annotated catalogue of the Hymenoptera of Russia. Proceedingss of the Zoological Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences 6: 197-210.
  • Kiran K., and C. Karaman. 2012. First annotated checklist of the ant fauna of Turkey (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Zootaxa 3548: 1-38.
  • Paknia, O., A. G. Radchenko, and M. Pfeiffer. "New records of ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) from Iran." Asian Myrmecology 3, no. 29-38 (2010).
  • Pashaei Rad S., B. Taylor, R. Torabi, E. Aram, G. Abolfathi, R. Afshari, F. Borjali, M. Ghatei, F. Hediary, F. Jazini, V. Heidary Kiah, Z. Mahmoudi, F. Safariyan, and M. Seiri. 2018. Further records of ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) from Iran. Zoology in the Middle East 64(2): 145-159.
  • Radchenko A. G. 1997. Review of the ants of scabriceps group of the genus Monomorium Mayr (Hymenoptera, Formicidae). Annales Zoologici (Warsaw) 46: 211-224.
  • Radchenko, A. G. "Review of the ants of scabriceps group of the genus Monomorium Mayr." Annales Zoologici, Warszawa 46 (1997): 211-224.
  • Salata S., L. Borowiec, and A.Trichas. 2018. Taxonomic Revision of the Cretan Fauna of the Genus Temnothorax Mayr, 1861 (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), with Notes on the Endemism of Ant Fauna of Crete. Annales Zoologici (Warsaw) 68(4): 769-808.
  • Salata S., and L Borowiec. 2017. Species of Tetramorium semilaeve complex from Balkans and western Turkey, with description of two new species of (Hymenoptera: Formicidae: Myrmicinae). Annales Zoologici (Warsaw) 62:279–313.
  • Salata S., and L. Borowiec. 2018. Taxonomic and faunistic notes on Greek ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Annals of the Upper Silesian Museum in Bytom Entomology 27: 1-51.
  • Salata S., and L. Borowiec. 2019. Preliminary division of not socially parasitic Greek Temnothorax Mayr, 1861 (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) with a description of three new species. ZooKeys 877: 81-131.
  • Sharaf M. R., S. Salman, H. M. Al Dhafer, S. A. Akbar, M. S. Abdel-Dayem, A. S. Aldawood. 2016. Taxonomy and distribution of the genus Trichomyrmex Mayr, 1865 (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in the Arabian Peninsula, with the description of two new species. European Journal of Taxonomy 246: 1–36