Lasius emarginatus

A very common species occurring in central and southern Europe, and from Anatolia to the Caucasus, even in disturbed habitats (Rigato & Toni, 2011).

Identification
Distinguished in the worker caste by the distinctly red alitrunk, more sparse, oblique appendage hairs and relatively longer antennal scapes. The queen has the mesoscutum reddish and distinctly flattened. The male has the mesopleurae in part testaceous yellow, sparse scape hairs and a more sculptured frontal triangle than Lasius niger (Collingwood 1979).

Distribution
This is a Central and South European species that occurs in Poland, and the Channel Islands (Collingwood 1979).

This taxon was described from France.

Nomenclature

 *  emarginatus. Formica emarginata Olivier, 1792: 494 (w.q.m.) FRANCE. Hauschteck, 1962: 219 (k.). Combination in Lasius: Fabricius, 1804: 416; in Formicina (Donisthorpea): Emery, 1916b: 240; in Lasius: Menozzi, 1921: 32; Müller, 1923: 123; in L. (Lasius): Wilson, 1955a: 89. Subspecies of niger: Forel, 1874: 46; Emery & Forel, 1879: 452; Ruzsky, 1905b: 302; Bondroit, 1910: 486; Stitz, 1914: 85. Status as species: André, 1882b: 193; Nasonov, 1889: 23; Ruzsky, 1902d: 16; Forel, 1915d: 53; Emery, 1916b: 240; Bondroit, 1918: 24; Müller, 1923: 123; Finzi, 1924a: 14; Karavaiev, 1927c: 279; Stitz, 1939: 283; Stärcke, 1944a: 155; Wilson, 1955a: 89; Bernard, 1967: 357; Kutter, 1977c: 228; Atanassov & Dlussky, 1992: 239; Seifert, 1992b: 34. Senior synonym of brunneoemarginatus, brunneoides, nigroemarginatus: Wilson, 1955a: 89; of illyricus, pontica: Seifert, 1992b: 34.
 * brunneoemarginatus. Lasius emarginatus var. brunneoemarginatus Forel, 1874: 47 (w.) SWITZERLAND. Junior synonym of emarginatus: Wilson, 1955a: 89.
 * brunneoides. Lasius niger var. brunneoides Forel, 1874: 47 (w.) SWITZERLAND. Junior synonym of emarginatus: Wilson, 1955a: 89.
 * nigroemarginatus. Lasius niger var. nigroemarginatus Forel, 1874: 47 (w.q.) SWITZERLAND. Subspecies of emarginatus: Dalla Torre, 1893: 184; Forel, 1915d: 53 (in key); Karavaiev, 1927c: 279. Junior synonym of emarginatus: Wilson, 1955a: 89; Kutter, 1977c: 14.
 * illyricus. Lasius alienus subsp. illyricus Zimmermann, 1935: 50 (w.q.m.) YUGOSLAVIA. Junior synonym of alienus: Wilson, 1955a: 78; of emarginatus: Seifert, 1992b: 34.
 * pontica. Lasius alienus var. pontica Stärcke, 1944a: 157 (w.) CAUCASUS. Junior synonym of alienus: Wilson, 1955a: 78 [repeat of this synonymy in Arakelian, 1994: 117, is ignored]; of emarginatus: Seifert, 1992b: 34.

Additional References

 * Collingwood, C. A. 1979. The Formicidae (Hymenoptera) of Fennoscandia and Denmark. Fauna Entomol. Scand. 8:1-174.


 * Rigato, F.; Toni, I. 2011. Short notes 21. Hymenoptera, Formicidae. Pp. 873-882 in: Nardi, G.; Whitmore, D.; Bardiani, M.; Birtele, D.; Mason, F.; Spada, L.; Cerretti, P. (eds.) 2011. Biodiversity of Marganai and Montimannu (Sardinia). Research in the framework of the ICP Forests network. Conservazione Habitat Invertebrati, 5. Sommacampagna, Verona: Cierre Edizioni, 896 pp.