Procryptocerus

A genus of arboreal nesting species, the workers of which are often collected foraging in low vegetation.

Identification
Longino and Snelling (2002) - The genus Procryptocerus can be separated from Cephalotes (in the broad sense of Andrade and Baroni Urbani, 1999) by the combination of the following worker and queen characters: (1) antennal scrobe extending almost to margin of vertex, (2) eyes situated below the scrobe, (3) frontal carinae not covering the genae from above, (4) pronotum without spines or teeth, (5) metatarsus not compressed, and (6) petiole and postpetiole without projecting spines, teeth, or tubercles (Kempf, 1951). Procryptocerus workers are strictly monomorphic (Wheeler, 1984). The larvae of several species of Procryptocerus have been described by Wheeler and Wheeler (1954, 1973), but no features unique to the genus have been identified. Although the above characters allow a clean separation of Procryptocerus and Cephalotes, it remains unknown whether any of them are synapomorphic. Thus it is unknown whether Procryptocerus is monophyletic or the paraphyletic remainder of the Cephalotini after Cephalotes is removed.

Nomenclature

 *  PROCRYPTOCERUS [Myrmicinae: Cephalotini]
 * Procryptocerus Emery, 1887b: 470 (footnote). Type-species: Meranoplus striatus, by subsequent designation of Wheeler, W.M. 1911f: 171.

Longino and Snelling (2002) - Kempf (1951) revised the genus, and subsequently published short addenda describing new species, making minor taxonomic changes, and providing new locality data (Kempf, 1957, 1960, 1964a, 1964b, 1969). The treatment of the Central American region, in particular, suffered from a severe paucity of material, and many of the taxa Kempf treated were known to him only by the type series (often a single specimen) or by brief published descriptions. New Central American material, the reevaluation of characters, and the examination of types warrant a review of the Central American species of the genus. Individual accounts for 14 species and a key to (Central American) species are provided. Species accounts include distribution, habitat affinities, nesting habits, and, in some cases, descriptions of nest contents.