Myopias menba

There types were collected as foragers from the ground in secondary rain forest.

Identification
Xu & Liu (2012) - This new species is close to Myopias nops but eyes present and each with 2 facets; apices of scapes failed to reach occipital corners; in profile view posterodorsal corner of petiolar node rounded, in dorsal view petiolar node about as broad as long.

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists
Palaearctic Region: China.

Castes
Known only from the worker caste.

Nomenclature

 *  menba. Myopias menba Xu & Liu, 2012: 824, figs. 8-11 (w.) CHINA.

Worker
Holotype. TL 3.3, HL 0.73, HW 0.58, CI 79, SL 0.45, SI 78, ML 0.45, ED 0.03, PW 0.41, AL 0.95, PL 0.30, PH 0.40, DPW 0.30, LPI 133, DPI 100.

Head nearly rectangular, longer than broad, lateral sides nearly parallel. Occipital margin straight, occipital corners bluntly prominent. Mandibles elongate, triangular, inner margin very short, about 1/3 length of masticatory margin. Masticatory margin with 4 teeth, including 1 basal tooth, 1 middle tooth, and 2 minute apical denticles beside the basal corner. Median lobe of clypeus protruding forward, nearly square, length : width = 3:4, lateral sides parallel, anterior margin straight. Longitudinal furrow between frontal lobes distinct. Antennae short, 12-segmented, apices of scapes reached to 4/5 of the distance from antennal sockets to occipital corners, antennal clubs 4-segmented. Eyes minute, with only 2 facets.

In profile view, promesonotum weakly convex, promesonotal suture and metanotal groove slightly depressed. Propodeal dorsum straight, about 2 times as long as declivity, posterodorsal corner rounded. Petiolar node very thick, roughly trapezoid, anterior face straight, dorsal face rounded into posterior face, anterodorsal corner bluntly prominent, posterodorsal corner indistinct. Subpetiolar process large, triangular, anteroventral corner bluntly prominent. Anterior and posteroventral faces nearly straight. In dorsal view, petiolar node trapezoid, widened backward, length : width = 1:1.1, anterior and lateral margins weakly convex, posterior margin weakly concave. Constriction between the two basal gastral segments distinct. Sting laterally compressed, apex relatively blunt.

Mandibles smooth and shining, with sparse fine punctures. Head, alitrunk, and petiole densely punctured, lateral sides of alitrunk finely longitudinally rugose, dorsal and posterior faces of petiolar node smooth. Gaster smooth and shining, dorsa of the two basal segments abundantly punctured, the rest segments sparsely punctured. Dorsa of head and body with sparse suberect short hairs and dense decumbent pubescence, gastral apex with abundant longer hairs. Scapes and tibiae with sparse suberect hairs and dense decumbent pubescence. Color brownish yellow, eyes black.

Type Material
Holotype: worker, CHINA: Tibet, Medog County, Medog Town, Yarang, 720m, forage on the ground in the secondary rain forest, 2008.V.20, Zheng-Hui Xu leg., No. A08-838.

Etymology
The new species is named after the Chinese minority nationality Menba who mainly lives in southeastern Tibet.

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

 * Guénard B., and R. R. Dunn. 2012. A checklist of the ants of China. Zootaxa 3558: 1-77.
 * Liu X. 2012. Taxonomy, diversity and spatial distribution characters of the ant family Formicidae (Insecta: Hymenoptera) in southeastern Tibet. PhD Thesis 139 pages
 * Xu Z.-H., and X. Liu. 2011. Three new species of the ant genus Myopias (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) from China with a key to the known Chinese species. Sociobiology 59: 819-834.
 * Xu Z.-H.; C. J. Burwell., and A. Nakamura. 2014. A new species of the ponerine ant genus Myopias Roger from Yunnan, China, with a key to the known Oriental species. Sociobiology 61(2): 164-170.