Pheidole sagittaria

According to Longino (1997), sagittaria is common in mature wet forests. The two nests he found were, respectively, in a piece of rotten wood on the ground and under the loose bark of a dead tree trunk. (Wilson 2003)

Identification
See the description in the nomenclature section.

Distribution
Mostly montane regions of Costa Rica from 500 to 1600 m (Longino 1997).

This taxon was described from Costa Rica.

Description
DIAGNOSIS Similar to Pheidole christopherseni, Pheidole exquisita, Pheidole nigricula, Pheidole nitella and Pheidole pygmaea, differing as follows.

Major: light brown; head strongly flattened dorsoventrally, so that in side view it is narrowly rectangular; in addition, the head and mandibles together in full-face view are heart-shaped or (adding flattening top to bottom) shaped like an arrowhead; propodeal spines reduced to denticles; apex of petiolar node pointed; carinulae cover most of anterior fourth of dorsal head surface, and almost all of the rest of the body smooth and shiny.

Minor: eye very large, oval, set far forward on head; propodeal spines reduced to denticles; almost all of head and body smooth and shiny.

MEASUREMENTS (mm) Holotype major: HW 0.72, HL 0.76, SL 0.38, EL 0.10, PW 0.34. Paratype minor: HW 0.34, HL 0.36, SL 0.32, EL 0.06, PW 0.22.

COLOR Major: body light brown, appendages yellowish brown.

Minor: body yellowish brown, appendages dark yellow.



'''Figure. Upper: holotype, major. Lower: paratype, minor. Scale bars = 1 mm.'''

Type Locality Information
COSTA RICA: Rio Toro Amarillo, near Guápiles, Limón, col. W. L. Brown.

Etymology
L sagittaria, pertaining to arrows, referring to the head shape of the major.

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