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Zigrasimecia caohuijiae
| †Zigrasimecia caohuijiae Temporal range: Early Cenomanian, Late Cretaceous Burmese amber, Kachin State, Myanmar | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Hymenoptera |
| Family: | Formicidae |
| Subfamily: | Zigrasimeciinae |
| Genus: | Zigrasimecia |
| Species: | †Z. caohuijiae |
| Binomial name | |
| †Zigrasimecia caohuijiae Chaul, 2023 | |
Photo Gallery
Chaul (2023), Fig. 7. Holotype of Zigrasimecia caohuijiae (ANTWEB1041055). A, full-face view of the head (view of anterior portion blocked by an insect antenna and bubbles); B, profile view of right side of body; C, ventrolateral view of anterior portion of head; D and F, anterior view of head, with a full view of dorsal surface of mandibles, F is under epifluorescence; E, dorsal view of the body; G and H, Detail of mesosoma under different types of epifluorescence. Scale bars are 0.2 mm in A, B and E and 0.1 mm in C and D. Black triangles point to the labral medial lobes (laterally to the median lobes in D a pair of protuberances which are likely the hypostomal teeth). Abbreviations: cllb, clypeal lobe; dsm, dorsal surface of mandible; Lmspl, lower mesopleuron; Lmtpl, lower metapleuron; sp, spiracle; Umspl, upper mesopleuron; vsm, ventral surface of mandible.
Chaul (2023), Fig. 8. Holotype of Zigrasimecia caohuijiae (ANTWEB1041055). A, dorsal view of mesosoma and petiole; B, detail of the right side of the petiole in profile, white triangle indicates the edge of the sclerite (posterior petiole tube or collar); C, zooming of pronotum in dorsal view under epifluorescent light, black triangles in A and C indicate minute decumbent setae on mesosoma (setae also clear in image D); D, zooming of propodeum and petiole under epifluorescent light; E, posterolateral view of propodeum, black triangle indicates hypertrophied propodeal spiracle; F, detail of probasitarsus, showing concentration of long, fine setae, white triangle indicates calcar with simple tip (not bifid), and black triangle indicates mesopretarsal claws with toothed inner margins; G, inner face of protibia and probasitarsus, showing two spur-like setae next to calcar; H, detail of abdominal segment VII and sting, black triangles show gonostyli. Scale bars are 0.1 mm.
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Identification
Small species. Head round in full-face view. Standing setae on body absent, except for tiny pubescence across the body. Dorsal mesosomal outline conspicuously convex; propodeal dorsal and posterior surfaces not separated from one another by a strongly marked corner. Petiolar node dorsal surface developed, round.
Zigrasimecia caohuijiae is unlikely the worker caste of Zigrasimecia tonsora or Zigrasimecia goldingot, the two species described based on queens (see below under Z. goldingot), and can be differentiated from Zigrasimecia boudinoti, Zigrasimecia chuyangsui and Zigrasimecia ferox by the lack of standing setae on body. It differs from the most glabrous Zigrasimecia thate in the absence of a patch of flagellate setae on the frontovertexal area and by the head and mesosoma shape (head subquadrate and propodeal dorsal and posterior surfaces in Z. thate marked by a strong corner and propodeal lobes). It differs from Zigrasimecia perrichoti by its smaller size, relatively smaller compound eye with fewer ommatidia, and petiole shape.
Keys including this Species
Distribution
This taxon was described from Burmese amber, Kachin State, Myanmar (Early Cenomanian, Late Cretaceous).
Castes
Nomenclature
The following information is derived from Barry Bolton's Online Catalogue of the Ants of the World.
- †caohuijiae. †Zigrasimecia caohuijiae Chaul, 2023: 313, figs. 7, 8 (w.) MYANMAR (Burmese Amber, Cretaceous).
Type Material
- Holotype worker (ANTWEB1041055). Hukawng Valley, Kachin Province, Myanmar; Lower Cenomanian (ca.98.79 ± 0.62 Ma) [CELC].
The original specimen was a 33 mm x 23 mm x 8 mm polished piece. It contained a lot of debris, an entire mite, a well-preserved small Staphylinidae, a damaged medium-sized beetle (head and pronotum missing), and some fragments of other arthropods, one of which is a long filiform antenna passing right in front of the ant's head. The gaster of the ant was positioned at the edge, with a small portion of the first and second gastral segments damaged. It was isolated from the rest of the piece and is now within a tiny 2.5 mm x 2.2 mm x 2 mm 7-faceted amber block. The filiform insect antenna in front of the ant's head could not be removed and prevents a clear full-face view of the anterior head, blocking most of the antennal insertions, the entire clypeus, and most of the mandibles. The specimen itself has little or no distortion/ stretching and the integument appears intact, except for the compound eyes and maybe a few portions of the frontovertexal area which appear shriveled/sunken.