Pheidole argentina

A permanent workerless parasite of Pheidole nitidula. (Wilson 2003)

Identification
See the description in the nomenclature section.

Distribution
Only known from the type locality.

This taxon was described from Argentina.

Description
From Wilson (2003): An extreme workerless parasite of Pheidole nitidula. The queen possesses a trait unique within the ants: the antenna is 10-segmented, with a well-developed, 1-segmented club. Also, the body is somewhat pupiform and the mandibles are reduced to toothless straps.

MEASUREMENTS (mm) Syntype queen: according to Bruch (1932), the total length of a queen in the type series is 1.7 mm.

COLOR Head, especially vertex, brownish yellow; mesosoma, waist, and gaster (except the apex) grayish brown.



'''Figure. Syntype, queen. (Adapted from Bruch 1932.) Scale bars = 1 mm.'''

Type Material
Mus. La Plata, Buenos Aires - as reported in Wilson (2003)

Type Locality Information
ARGENTINA: Alta Gracia (La Granja), Sierra de Córdoba (Carlos Bruch). (Wilson 2003)

Etymology
Named after the country of origin. (Wilson 2003)