Wasmannia affinis

Wasmannia iheringi, Wasmannia lutzi, Wasmannia affinis and Wasmannia scrobifera occur mostly with Wasmannia auropunctata and Wasmannia rochai in the Atlantic Forest of southeastern Brazil and/or the Amazon Forest in Brazil (Cuezzo et al. 2015, Longino and Fernández 2007).

Identification
Wasmannia affinis and Wasmannia lutzi are two related species from southeastern Brazil. They share a unique development of the antennal scrobe. The scrobe is very broad, forming a flat surface that extends from the frontal carinae to the side of the head. The side of the head is somewhat angular posterior to the eye. The preocular carina is faint and does not form the ventral border of the scrobe. In contrast, all other species of Wasmannia have a more narrow scrobe that does not reach the side of the head in full face view. The ventral margin of the scrobe is limited by the preocular carina or, in cases where the carina is faint or absent, where it would be if it extended posterior to the eye. The side of the head behind the eye is rounded. The expanded scrobe is also present in the queen of lutzi, resulting in a strongly trapezoidal head shape, such that the head is broader behind the eyes than across them. Wasmannia affinis differs from lutzi in (1) the propodeal spines are shorter, and (2) in dorsal view, the postpetiole is elliptical with rounded sides, and the widest point is at or behind the midlength. (Longino & Fernández 2007)

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists
Neotropical Region: Brazil.

Biology
Rosumek (2017) examined trophic and temporal niches of ants in a secondary Atlantic forest (Florianópolis, south Brazil; ), between December 2015 and January 2016. For this species: Wasmannia affinis had a smaller incidence in the community, but used a broader range of resources. Feces were not particularly important, and having more records on termites, seeds and melezitose would make it unique among species of this work, although it was not possible to statistically confirm this pattern.

Bieber et al. (2013) found W. affinis was attracted to fallen fruits of Psychotria suterella (Rubiaceae).

Nomenclature

 *  affinis. Wasmannia affinis Santschi, 1929d: 300, figs. 25, 26 (w.) BRAZIL. See also: Longino & Fernández, 2007: 276.

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

 * Bieber A. G. D., P. D. Silva, and P. S. Oliveira. 2013. Attractiveness of Fallen Fleshy Fruits to Ants Depends on Previous Handling by Frugivores. Écoscience 20: 85-89.
 * Clemes Cardoso D., and J. H. Schoereder. 2014. Biotic and abiotic factors shaping ant (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) assemblages in Brazilian coastal sand dunes: the case of restinga in Santa Catarina. Florida Entomologist 97(4): 1443-1450.
 * Clemes Cardoso D., and M. Passos Cristiano. 2010. Myrmecofauna of the Southern Catarinense Restinga sandy coastal plain: new records of species occurrence for the state of Santa Catarina and Brazil. Sociobiology 55(1b): 229-239.
 * Fernandes T. T., R. R. Silva, D. Rodrigues de Souza-Campana, O. Guilherme Morais da Silva, and M. Santina de Castro Morini. 2019. Winged ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) presence in twigs on the leaf litter of Atlantic Forest. Biota Neotropica 19(3): http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/1676-0611-bn-2018-0694
 * Fernandes T. T., W. Dattilo, R. R. Silva, P. Luna, C. M. Oliveira, and M. Santina de Castro Morini. 2019. Ant occupation of twigs in the leaf litter of the Atlantic Forest: influence of the environment and external twig structure. Tropical Conservation Science 12: 1-9.
 * Kempf, W.W. 1972. Catalago abreviado das formigas da regiao Neotropical (Hym. Formicidae) Studia Entomologica 15(1-4).
 * Lutinski J. A., B. C. Lopes, and A. B. B.de Morais. 2013. Diversidade de formigas urbanas (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) de dez cidades do sul do Brasil. Biota Neotrop. 13(3): 332-342.
 * Rosumek, F.B., M.A. Ulyssea, B.C. Lopes, J. Steiner. 2008. Formigas de solo e de bromélias em uma área de Mata Atlântica, Ilha de Santa Catarina, sul do Brasil: Levantamento de espécies e novos registros. Revista Biotemas 21(4):81-89.
 * Santos Lopes J. F., N. Martins dos Reis Hallack, T. Archanjo de Sales, M. Silva Brugger, L. F. Ribeiro, I. N. Hastenreiter, and R. da Silva Camargo. 2012. Comparison of the Ant Assemblages in Three Phytophysionomies: Rocky Field, Secondary Forest, and Riparian ForestA Case Study in the State Park of Ibitipoca, Brazil. Psyche doi:10.1155/2012/928371
 * Silva R.R., and C. R. F. Brandao. 2014. Ecosystem-Wide Morphological Structure of Leaf-Litter Ant Communities along a Tropical Latitudinal Gradient. PLoSONE 9(3): e93049. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0093049
 * Suguituru S. S., M. Santina de Castro Morini, R. M. Feitosa, and R. Rosa da Silva. 2015. Formigas do Alto Tiete. Canal 6 Editora 458 pages