Lasius draco

The type series were collected from under a stone and from soil (Collingwood 1982).

Identification
Collingwood (1982): A high mountain species related to L. crinitus but differing in smaller body size, abundant subdecumbent abundant. appendage hairs and straight body hairs. In frontal view the petiole sides slope inwards to a narrow, flattened or feebly emarginate dorsal crest. L. draco is very similar to L. jensi Seifert but has the palpi more slender, the head relatively longer, the tibial pilosity less erect and the gaster hairs longer. It differs from both mikir and crinitus by its abundant appendage pilosity and from L. meridionalis Bond and L. rabaudi Bonds by the strongly convex petiole.

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists
Oriental Region: Bhutan, India.

Nomenclature

 *  draco. Lasius draco Collingwood, 1982: 294, figs. 9, 22 (w.) BHUTAN.

Description
Worker

Head robust with subparallel sides and straight to feebly emarginate occipital border. Eyes relatively large with maximum diameter twice maximum scape width, Frontal triangle. wider than high. Scape long and thin in the plane of flexion; funiculus segments elongate.

Body colour yellow. Dorsal body pubes cence sparse, especially on gaster which is shining. Gaster hairs numerous, straight, arising from large shallow pits. Eyes with long hairs; long occipital hairs continue as a scat tered fringe of shorter hairs around genal margins. Tibial hairs subdecumbent to sub erect, sparse on front tibiae. Scape hairs

Measurements: Total length 4.0-4.3 mm. EL 0.15-0.17 mm. HL 1.08-1.15 mm. HW 0.95-1.05 mm. SL 1.00-1.01 mm. CI 92-93. SI 96-97, SSC 45-58. Longest hair on gaster dorsum 0.127 mm, maximum width of hind tibia 0.161 mm..

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

 * Bharti H. 2011. List of Indian ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Halteres 3: 79-87.
 * Collingwood C. A. 1982. Himalayan ants of the genus Lasius (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Systematic Entomology 7: 283-296.
 * Fontanilla A. M., A. Nakamura, Z. Xu, M. Cao, R. L. Kitching, Y. Tang, and C. J. Burwell. 2019. Taxonomic and functional ant diversity along tropical, subtropical, and subalpine elevational transects in southwest China. Insects 10, 128; doi:10.3390/insects10050128