Lasius grandis

This ant has been associated with the butterfly Laeosopis roboris and Tomares ballus (Obregon et al. 2015). It was found to be one of the most common invertebrates in historic gardens in the Azores (Arteaga et al., 2020)

Distribution
Seifert (2020) - Iberia, southernmost France (in Rhone valley north to 44°N), Corsica, Sardinia, introduced to Tenerife. Altitudinal records range from sea level up to 2300 m in the Sierra Nevada at 37°N.

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists
Palaearctic Region: Albania, Andorra, Balearic Islands, Canary Islands, Iberian Peninsula, Portugal, Spain.

Biology
Seifert (2020) - This is the most abundant species of the subgenus in Iberia. Laisus grandis inhabits open habitats as well as deciduous and coniferous woodland habitats. It prefers medium to humid moisture conditions and occurs at lower altitudes typically in sheltered conditions (gorges or valleys with running waters). At sites with more precipitations, at altitudes above 2000 m or along the Atlantic coast of Iberia, it occurs in open grassland. Nests are under stones or in soil. Mound construction with mineral soil material, as it is typical for Lasius niger, is occasionally observed. L. grandis behaves as aggressively as L. niger after disturbance of the nest. Alates were observed between end of June and end of July.

Occasional hybridization between Iberian L. grandis and Lasius emarginatus occurs in the contact zone in southern France.

Beltra et al. (2017) found this ant forging on grape vines in Eastern Spain vineyards.

Nomenclature

 *  grandis. Lasius niger var. grandis Forel, 1909c: 104 (w.) SPAIN. Seifert, 1992b: 32 (q.). Junior synonym of alienus: Wilson, 1955a: 77; of niger: Yarrow, 1967: 30. Revived from synonymy and raised to species: Seifert, 1992b: 32.

Description
Seifert (2020) - Absolute size rather large (CS 984 µm). Head and scape length indices large (CL/CW900 1.095, SL/CS900 1.037); postocular distance low (PoOc/CL900 0.222); toruloclypeal distance large (dClAn900 5.01); eye size medium (EYE/CS900 0.239); terminal segment of maxillary palp long (MP6/CS900 0.208). Number of mandibular dents large (MaDe900 8.62). Pubescence on clypeus moderately dense (sqPDCL900 4.53); frontal pubescence short (PLF900 27.2). All body parts with rather numerous standing setae of medium length (PnHL/CS900 0.145, GuHL/CS900 0.125, nGu900 9.8, nSc900 17.5, nHT900 19.4). Cuticular surface of dorsal head and mesosoma within the meshes of the microreticulum smooth and shining. There are two color morphs. The dark morph is rather homogenously dark brown with the exception of pale yellowish-brown mandibles, scapes and tibiae. The light morph shows a distinct reddish color component with clypeus, mandibles, mesosoma, petiole and appendages light reddish-brown whereas vertex and gaster are darker reddish-brown. The light morph constitutes 90% of the samples from Corsica and Sardinia and the dark morph 95% of the samples from Iberia and southern France.

See table 7 in Seifert 2020 for additional morphometrics. The abbreviated names of various quantitative data shown above are defined here: Seifert 2020 Lasius characters.

Type Material
Seifert (2020) - Lectotype (des. E.O. Wilson) plus 4 paralectotype workers on two pins labelled ”L. niger v, grandis Forel type Ronda, Andalousie (C.Voigt)“, ”ANTWEB CASENT 0911047“; depository:.

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