Pheidole hirsuta

Identification
See the description in the nomenclature section.

Distribution
Atlantic and Pacific lowlands of Costa Rica (Longino 1997).

This taxon was described from Costa Rica.

Nomenclature

 *  hirsuta. Pheidole hirsuta Emery, 1896g: 65 (s.) COSTA RICA. See also: Wilson, 2003: 299.

Description
From Wilson (2003): A large dark brown (major) or medium reddish brown (minor) member of the fallax group.

Major: a bicolorous head; rugoreticulation extending on either side of the dorsum of the head from its anterior margin to near the occiput, separated by a band of carinulae that originates on the frontal lobes; mesopleuron and side of propodeum covered by longitudinal carinulae; and propodeal spine short and erect.

Minor: bicolorous; completely smooth and shiny except for circular carinulae around the antennal fossae and longitudinal carinulae that cover the mesopleuron and side of propodeum; nuchal collar present.

Similar to Pheidole lourothi, differing in many details of the characters described above.

MEASUREMENTS (mm) Holotype major: HW 1.96, HL 2.00, SL 1.14, EL 0.26, PW 0.94. Minor: HW 0.64, HL 0.82, SL 1.06, EL 0.14, PW 0.46.

COLOR Major: head bicolorous, mostly medium brown, with anterior one-fourth of capsule, including clypeus, genae anterior to eyes and anterior tips of frontal lobes yellowish brown; rest of body mostly dark brown; appendages light brown.

Minor: blackish brown, with contrasting yellow clypeal lateral wings, mandibles, antennal club, and tarsi.



'''Figure. Upper: holotype, major. Lower: minor. COSTA RICA: La Selva Biological Station, near Puerto Viejo, Heredia (E. O. Wilson). Scale bars = 1 mm.'''

Type Material
- as reported in Wilson (2003)

Type Locality Information
Jiménez, near Guápiles, Limón. (Wilson 2003)

Etymology
L hirsuta, hairy. (Wilson 2003)

Additional References
Emery, C. 1896g. Studi sulle formiche della fauna neotropica, XVII–XXV. Bull. Soc. Entomol. Ital. 28: 33–107.

Text and images from this publication used by permission of the author.