Temnothorax elmenshawyi

The type locality (Raydah) is located in the Asir Mountains, 10 km west of the city of Abha and with an estimated area of 9 km2. This area includes one of the last remnants of dense juniper forests (African pencil cedar, Juniperus procera (Cupressaceae) remaining on the Arabian Peninsula. Nothing is known of the biology and ecology of this species.

Identification
Sharaf et al. (2019) - Temnothorax elmenshawyi can be distinguished from other members of the Temnothorax exilis species group (characters: colour usually dark brown or black; promesonotal suture distinct; propodeal spines short and acute; petiolar node in profile triangular; body sculpture feeble) by the impressed metanotal groove, the short, acute and broadly based propodeal spines, the finely punctate posterior half of cephalic surface, and the absence of median clypeal carina.

Temnothorax elmenshawyi cannot be confused with any other Arabian Temnothorax species. It can be immediately separated by the uniformly very dark brown to blackish colour (vs. yellowish in the other three species), moderately large eyes (vs. extremely large eyes in Temnothorax liviae), and the mostly unsculptured posterior half of the head behind the level of the eyes (vs. conspicuously rugulose/rugose in the other three Arabian species).

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists
Afrotropical Region: Saudi Arabia.

Biology


More than 220 pitfall traps were placed in the Asir Mountains during two years of sampling and only two specimens of the new species were trapped. Undoubtedly, this may reflect the scarcity of this species and indicate a high probability of it being a regional endemic. Due to the extension of the Asir Mountains into Yemen, Temnothorax elmenshawyi may also occur in that country. It is hoped that future surveys of ants of this region will confirm this distribution, and result in the discovery of additional specimens, especially the male and queen castes.

Castes
Queens and males unknown.

Nomenclature

 *  elmenshawyi. Temnothorax elmenshawyi Sharaf, Wachkoo, Hita Garcia, in Sharaf et al., 2019: 2, figs. 1, 2, 4B,F (w.) SAUDI ARABIA.

Worker
Holotype measurements (paratype in brackets). EL 0.20 (0.17); FRS 0.15 (0.12); HL 0.75 (0.75); HW 0.62 (0.57); IOD 0.52 (0.52); MD 0.25 (0.20); PPH 0.20 (0.17); PPL 0.15 (0.17); PPW 0.20 (0.22); PTH 0.22 (0.22); PTL 0.27 (0.22); PTW; 0.15 (0.12) PW 0.45 (0.40); SL 0.55 (0.45); SPST 0.22 (0.15); WL 0.92 (0.87). Indices. CI 83 (76); DPeI 56 (55); DPpI 133 (129); LPpI 75 (100); OI 32 (30); PeNI 33 (30); PPI 133 (100); PpNI 44 (55); PSLI 29 (20); SI 73 (60). Head. In full-face view distinctly longer than broad with nearly straight posterior margin, rounded corners and feebly convex sides; anterior clypeal margin entire and convex; frontal carinae short and distinctly failing to reach anterior margin of eyes in full-face view; mandibles armed with five teeth decreasing in size from apex to base; antennae 12-segmented; scape relatively short (SI 60–73) clearly not reaching posterior margin of head by about length of second funicular segment in full-face view; eyes moderately large (EL 0.29–0.32 Å~ HW, OI 30–32) with about 16 ommatidia in the longest row. Mesosoma. Promesonotal suture indistinct; promesonotum flat in profile; metanotal grove distinct; propodeal spines short, acute and broadly based (PSLI 20–29). Petiole. In profile without a peduncle; the anterior face forms a shallow concavity anteriorly; anterior face of petiolar node forms a right angle with posterior face; subpetiolar process reduced to a small denticle. Postpetiole. In profile globular (LPpI 75–100) and relatively lower than the height of the petiole; in dorsal view trapezoidal broadest anteriorly, 1.2–1.3 broader than long (DPpI 129–133). Sculpture. Mandibles longitudinally rugulose; clypeus and cephalic surface behind posterior levels of eyes to posterior margin of head mostly unsculptured medially and shiny, laterally with sparse punctate ground sculpture; cephalic surface starting from posterior margins of clypeus to posterior level of eyes faintly longitudinally irregularly rugulose; dorsal surface of mesosoma densely and finely punctate; lateral sides of mesosoma densely punctate; area between mesopleura and metapleura with distinct longitudinal rugae; promesonotum and mesonotum smooth in dorsal view; propodeum irregularly rugulose; petiole and postpetiole densely and finely punctate; gaster smooth and shining. Pilosity. Anterior clypeal margin with six protrusive setae, two short lateral and four central longer ones; clypeus and cephalic surface with appressed scattered pubescence; posterior margin of head with four pairs of erect setae; antennae with abundant appressed pubescence; promesonotum with seven pairs of blunt stiff, short erect setae; mesonotum and propodeum each with two pairs of setae; propodeal spines with one pair of setae; petiole with three pairs of longer setae directed posteriad; postpetiole with five pairs of setae; gaster with scattered blunt setae. Colour. Uniformly black, tibiae and tarsi pale brown.

Type Material


Cybertype. Volumetric raw data (in DICOM format), 3D rotation video (in.mp4 format, T.elmenshawyi_ CASENT0790240_video.mp4), still images of surface volume rendering, and 3D surface (in PLY format) of the physical paratype (CASENT0790240) in addition to montage photos illustrating head in full-face view, profile and dorsal views of the body. The data is deposited at Dryad23 (https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.4gg39k6) and can be freely accessed as virtual representation of the type. In addition to the cybertype data at Dryad, the 3D surface model of the holotype (shown above in the caste section) is available at Sketchfab (https://skfb.ly/6HYRz).

Etymology
This new species is named in the honor of the late Egyptian Qur’an reader Mohamed Siddiq El-Menshawy (1920–1969).

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

 * Sharaf M. R., S. A. Aldawood, E. P. Economo, A. A. Wachkoo, and F. Hita Garcia. 2019. Taxonomy of Arabian Temnothorax Mayr (Formicidae: Myrmicinae) with description of a new species enhanced by x-ray microtomography. Scientific Reports 9: 11009.