Stenamma owstoni

Stenamma owstoni is found in woodland or its margins, and nests in the soil. Kubota (1988) reported many seeds of the plant Clethra barbinervis from a nest. This suggests that S. owstoni is a gramnivore, which harvests seeds for larval food. A rather rare species. (Japanese Ant Image Database)

Identification
Judging from Arnoldi's (1975) description of the Russian species Stenemma kurilense, S. owstoni is similar, but kurilense is smaller and less slender. Arnoldi indicated that the petiole of S. kurilense is shorter and higher than that of S. owstoni. But S. owstoni is more variable in size, so that the proportions and the shape of the petiole are substantially variable. Thus, the identity of S. kurilense versus S. owstoni needs examination.

Distribution
Forel (1911) recorded it from Hokkaido, but we suppose this record to be a misidentification. The northernmost confirmed distribution record is from Iwate Prefecture (Tanaka, 1974a; Japanese Ant Image Database).

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists
Palaearctic Region: China, Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea, Japan, Republic of Korea.

Nomenclature

 *  owstoni. Stenamma owstoni Wheeler, W.M. 1906c: 314 (w.) JAPAN. Yasumatsu & Murakami, 1960: 30 (q.). See also: DuBois, 1998b: 288.

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

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