Pheidole senilis

The Agua Funda colony was collected in rotten wood. (Wilson 2003)

Identification
See the description in the nomenclature section.

Distribution
Minas Gerais and São Paulo states, Brazil. (Wilson 2003)

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists
Neotropical Region: Brazil.

Nomenclature

 *  senilis. Pheidole hetschkoi var. senilis Santschi, 1929d: 289 (w.) BRAZIL. Raised to species: Wilson, 2003: 752.

Description
From Wilson (2003): DIAGNOSIS Similar to Pheidole aper, Pheidole bambusarum, Pheidole brevicona, Pheidole dyctiota, Pheidole laeviventris, Pheidole lutzi, Pheidole risii, Pheidole rugatula, Pheidole sigillata, Pheidole trachyderma and Pheidole traini, differing as follows.

Major: very large; in full-face view, occiput covered by faint oblique carinulae that originate on midline and turn outward; most of vertex and sides of head rugoreticulate, frontal lobes carinulate; in full-face view, semicircular carinulae of antennal fossa are sharply demarcated from the carinulae that cross over anteriorly to the lateral wings of the clypeus; pronotal dorsum loosely rugoreticulate, with sides and lower half of the mesopleuron smooth; postpetiole 2X broader than petiole, and spinose.

Minor: posterior dorsum and sides of head “tiger-striped” with semicircular carinulae; humeri rugoreticulate; occiput narrow, with nuchal collar.

MEASUREMENTS (mm) Major (Agua Funda, São Paulo): HW 2.20, HL 2.34, SL 1.00, EL 0.24, PW 1.04. Lectotype minor: HW 0.80, HL 0.84, SL 0.94, EL 0.16, PW 0.56.

COLOR Major and minor: body medium reddish brown, appendages reddish yellow.



'''Figure. Upper: major (Agua Funda, near São Funda, São Paulo, col. W. L. Brown; associated with minor compared with lectotype minor). Lower: minor (Agua Funda, São Paulo; compared with lectotype minor). Scale bars = 1 mm.'''

Type Material
- as reported in Wilson (2003)

Type Locality Information
Passa Quatro, Minas Gerais, Brazil; no majors were in type series (Wilson 2003)

Etymology
L senilis, old, aged, probably alluding to the wrinkly head surface. (Wilson 2003)

Additional References
Santschi, F. 1929. Nouvelles fourmis de la République Argentine et du Brésil. An. Soc. Cient. Argent. 107: 273–316.

Text and images from this publication used by permission of the author.