Colobopsis abdita

Wheeler (1934) reported the following collections: Specimens from 11 colonies taken by Dr. Skwarra at Fortin in stems of Acacia pennatula and Mirador in hollow stems and twigs of Heliocarpus appendiculatus Turcz, Conostegia xalapensis and several undetermined plants. Gillette et al. (2015) in a Chaipas, Mexico field study of twig-nesting ants in coffee plants found Colobopsis abdita nesting on plants between 850-1300 m in elevation.

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists
Neotropical Region: Guatemala, Mexico.

Nomenclature

 *  abdita. Camponotus (Colobopsis) abditus Forel, 1899c: 158 (q.) GUATEMALA. Wheeler, W.M. 1934g: 216 (s.w.m.); Wheeler, G.C. & Wheeler, J. 1991b: 96 (l.). Combiniation in Colobopsis: Ward, et al., 2016: 350.

Worker
Wheeler (1934) - Worker Length 3.5-4 mm.

Head distinctly larger, broader and more convex behind than in Colobopsis etiolata; antennal scapes shorter; epinotum more compressed laterally. Petiolar scale more subelliptical from behind, with shorter, more deeply sinuate superior border. Sordid brownish yellow, with posterior portion of head, petiole and thoracic dorsum extensively clouded with brown; gaster castaneous or dark brown throughout, or more rarely with the bases of the first and second segments yellow.

Soldier Length 5-6 mm.

Head distinctly larger and proportionally longer than in Colobopsis etiolata, the truncated surface less circular and more transversely elliptical, the portion of the clypeus behind the truncation fully twice as long in proportion to its width. Meso- and epinotum more compressed laterally, the base of the latter less convex, the declivity usually less concave. Petiolar scale thicker, impressed in the middle behind. Sculpture of the truncation and adjacent portion of the head decidedly finer, the foveolae on the cheeks more distinct and less confluent, and these regions lacking the numerous, blunt, erect hairs of C. etiolata. Color of posterior portion of head, of the thorax, petiole and appendages more sordid brownish yellow and less reddish yellow than in C. etiolata, and the vertex, thoracic dorsum and summit of petiole more or less clouded with brown. Gastric segments with darker, broader and less clearly defined fascire and usually lacking the yellow margins of C. etiolata. In most cases the whole gaster is castaneous brown except the bases of the first and second segments.

Queen
Wheeler (1904) - Length, 7.5 mm. The truncation of the face is much more concave than in Colobopsis truncata, and bordered by a distinct ridge, as in Colobopsis rothneyi; but the portion of the clypeus situated behind the truncated surface is short, as in C. truncata. The truncated surface forms rather accurately a semicircle, the diameter of which is in front. Borders of the clypeus feebly diverging behind. Frontal carinae very far apart, slightly sinuous. Head behind the truncation in the form of a short rectangle, a little broader in front than behind, much shorter than in C. truncata and C. rothneyi, a little longer than broad. Eyes large, placed a little in front of the posterior third. Scapes hardly incrassated at the tip, rather slender, extending a little beyond the occiput. Joints of funiculus altogether cylindrical, not separated by constrictions. Thorax and petiole as in C. truncata. Body narrow, elongated. Legs rather short; femora compressed.

Truncated surface of the head finely and rather irregularly reticulate, subopaque; the portion of the head immediately behind this region is finely and densely reticulate-punctate, rather opaque, with large and very abundant, scattered punctures. Occiput, vertex, and the remainder of the body shining, feebly shagreened. Pilosity and pubescence very sparse. Tibiae and tarsi without erect hairs.

Pale reddish yellow; legs and antennae yellow. Middle portions of the gastric segments largely clouded with brownish. Wings subhyaline; veins and stigma pale yellow.

Male
Wheeler (1934) - (undescribed). Length 4-4.5 mm.

Very similar in form to the male of C. etiolata but distinctly different in coloration. Head, thorax and appendages pale sordid yellow; ocellar region and gaster dark brown. In C. etiolata the head, thorax, gaster, and femora are brown and only the tibiae, tarsi, antennae and thoracic sutures are yellow. In abditus the wings are whitish, the veins and pterostigma very pale yellow; in C. etiolata these structures are resin yellow, the pterostigma sometimes brown.

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

 * Branstetter M. G. and L. Sáenz. 2012. Las hormigas (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) de Guatemala. Pp. 221-268 in: Cano E. B. and J. C. Schuster. (eds.) 2012. Biodiversidad de Guatemala. Volumen 2. Guatemala: Universidad del Valle de Guatemala, iv + 328 pp
 * Dattilo W. et al. 2019. MEXICO ANTS: incidence and abundance along the Nearctic-Neotropical interface. Ecology https://doi.org/10.1002/ecy.2944
 * De la Mora, A., C. J. Murnen, and S. M. Philpott. 2013. Local and landscape drivers of biodiversity of four groups of ants in Neotropical coffee landscapes. Biodiversity and Conservation 22: 871-888.
 * Kempf, W.W. 1972. Catalago abreviado das formigas da regiao Neotropical (Hym. Formicidae) Studia Entomologica 15(1-4).
 * Larsen, A., and S. M. Philpott. 2010. Twig-nesting ants: the hidden predators of the coffee berry borer in Chiapas, Mexico. Biotropica 42: 342-347.
 * Philpott, S.M. and P.F. Foster. 2005. Nest-site limitation in coffee agroecosytems: Artificial nests maintain diversity of arboreal ants. Ecological Applications 15(4):1478-1485
 * Wheeler W. M. 1904. The American ants of the subgenus Colobopsis. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History. 20: 139-158.
 * Wheeler W. M. 1934. Neotropical ants collected by Dr. Elisabeth Skwarra and others. Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoology 77: 157-240.