Strumigenys elegantula

This species was originally found in the leaf litter of an dry evergreen forest. In Hong Kong, this seldom encountered ant was found across a wide range of areas and habitats including managed grasslands, trees along roadsides, shrubland, secondary forest, and Feng Shui woods. Known elevation range in Hong Kong is from 1 to 254 m (Tang et al., 2019).

Identification
Bolton (2000) - A member of the Strumigenys leptothrix-group. Seven species of this group, of which elegantula is one, have the propodeal spines subtended by lamellae (see discussion under Strumigenys leptothrix). Of the seven leptothrix and Strumigenys jacobsoni are quickly distinguished from the other five (Strumigenys alecto, Strumigenys benten, elegantula, Strumigenys formosimonticola, Strumigenys japonica) as the former pair have the cephalic dorsum very densely hairy, with standing hairs arising all over the dorsum from the posterior clypeal margin to the occipital margin. In the other five species standing hairs on the dorsum of the head are much sparser and more limited in distribution, restricted to the zone around the highest point of the vertex to the occipital margin, or absent. Of this complex only alecto and elegantula have long freely projecting hairs on the tibiae; elegantula has the pronotum marginate dorsolaterally and the mesopleuron reticulate-punctate, whereas in alecto the pronotal dorsum rounds into the sides and the mesopleuron is completely smooth.

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists
Oriental Region: Taiwan, Thailand. Palaearctic Region: China.

Nomenclature

 *  elegantula. Smithistruma elegantula Terayama & Kubota, 1989: 788, figs. 23-27 (w.q.) TAIWAN. Combination in Pyramica: Bolton, 1999: 1673; in Strumigenys: Baroni Urbani & De Andrade, 2007: 119. See also: Bolton, 2000: 431.

Worker
Bolton (2000) - HL 0.62-0.66, HW 0.44-0.48, CI 71-73, ML 0.07-0.08, MI 11-13, SL 0.32-0.34, SI 68-74 (6 measured). Cephalic dorsum in profile without standing hairs, or at most with a single sparse transverse row close to the occipital margin. In full-face view laterally projecting straight hairs restricted to the dorsolateral margins of the occipital lobes, where 1-3 may occur on each side. Leading edge of scape with apically directed small hairs only, without freely projecting long simple hairs. Dentition discussed in introduction to group. Pronotum marginate dorsolaterally, the dorsum more or less flat transversely; humeral hair straight and simple, projecting laterally; pronotal dorsum without standing hairs. Mesonotal dorsum with 3 pairs of standing simple hairs. Mesopleuron reticulate-punctate. Propodeal spines subtended by broad lamellae. Dorsal (outer) surfaces of middle and hind tibiae with suberect long straight simple projecting hairs, the longest of them distinctly longer than the maximum tibial width. Femora and basitarsi with similar projecting hairs.

Type Material
Bolton (2000) - Holotype worker, paratype workers and queen, TAIWAN: Nantou Hsien, Puli, 12.vii.1982 (M. Terayama); same locality but 20.viii.1987 (S. Kubota & H. Sakai); Kaohsiung Hsien, Liukuei, 17.viii.1987 (H. Sakai) [examined].