Camponotus esau

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists
Australasian Region: Australia.

Nomenclature

 * . Camponotus (Myrmocamelus) esau Forel, 1915b: 103, fig. 6 (w.) AUSTRALIA (Queensland).
 * Combination dubiously in C. (Myrmophyma): Emery, 1925b: 112.
 * Status as species: Emery, 1925b: 112; Taylor & Brown, 1985: 113; Taylor, 1987a: 12; Bolton, 1995b: 98; McArthur, 2007a: 334; McArthur, 2014: 122.

Description
Worker minor Length 5-5.5 mm. Mandibles with six sharp teeth, amply and coarsely punctated, glossy. The front edge of the clypeus is rather arc shaped, with a central keel. Frontal area weak, three cornered. Head about a fifth longer than broad at the rear, trapeze shaped, in front much narrower than behind, quite straight in front of the eyes, behind them weakly convex compressed sides, with a straight posterior border. Eyes set in about the posterior third. Frontal carinae are S shaped, rather long, in front close to one another,behind widely separated. The scape protrudes over the posterior head for about 2/5 but at least 1/3 of its length. Thorax almost somewhat wider than the head, immensely strongly hunch back convex. The peak of the convexity lies in the posterior middle and almost at the anterior margin of the basal part of the epinotum. The epinotum is curved anteriorly and the base is twice as long as the declivity into which it almost unnoticeable runs over in a slightly stronger curve. The node is equally thick above and below, slightly bent to the front, twice as high as thick with a convex top which is not quite double as wide as it is long. In front and behind straight and almost vertically cut. The gaster oval rather short. Legs without spikes, ie. with only 2 on the lower surface. Quite matt, thickly punctate and finely reticulate. Limbs finely reticulate and glossy, moreover the gaster, especially behind, fine and amply punctate. Upstanding covering of hair on the body yellowish and well scattered, rather long, lacking on the limbs (except for several short pubes on the tarsus). Pubescence ample, especially on the gaster, somewhat shining silver, as also the upstanding hair; but the flat lying hairs are not thick, although they lie close to each other when they are long. Quite black, mandibles and limbs brown, the basal half of the scape brownish red. Cedar Creek (Queensland) This kind C. ephippium narses but it is different through the strange shape of the thorax, from all its relations especially because of the fact that the thorax hump is highest at the epinotum. For the same mentioned reason I turn only provisionally to the sub-genera Myrmocameleus, until the discovery of a major worker.