Cephalotes membranaceus

Identification
A member of the clypeatus clade characterised in the worker and in the soldier by the body light ferruginous-brown with the head, mesosoma, pedicel and gaster surrounded by a semitransparent lamellaceous border, and, in the soldier and in the gyne, by the head with an incomplete disc. The soldier and the gyne of this species have traces of a cephalic disc, missing in the other related species. The closest relative of membranaceus is Cephalotes clypeatus and both species, clypeatus and membranaceus, share the propodeal spines of the soldier strongly curved up- and forwards. (de Andrade and Baroni Urbani 1999)

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists
Neotropical Region: Brazil.

Nomenclature

 *  membranaceus. Cryptocerus membranaceus Klug, 1824: 208 (w.) BRAZIL. Kempf, 1973c: 453 (s.q.). Combination in Cephalotes: Emery, 1914c: 39; in Zacryptocerus: Emery, 1915i: 192; in Cephalotes: Baroni Urbani, 1998: 326; De Andrade & Baroni Urbani, 1999: 294. Senior synonym of fervidus: Kempf, 1958a: 135. See also: Kempf, 1951: 141.
 * fervidus. Cryptocerus fervidus Smith, F. 1876d: 605, pl. 11, fig. 1 (q.) BRAZIL. Junior synonym of membranaceus: Kempf, 1958a: 135.

Worker
Kempf (1951) - Length 5.6 mm. Median head length 1.46 mm. Weber's length of thorax 1.58 mm. Ochraceous, darker than the preceding species [clypeatus], subopaque, strongly shagreened.

Head transverse. Frontal carinae not hyaline, semiopaque, due to strong sculpture; rounded anteriorly, sinuate laterally and strongly upturned, vertical and lobate above the eyes. Occipital angle dentate with a broad, blunt, stout tooth projecting from beneath. Eye stalk not completely united with frontal carinae, the apical end free.

Thorax similar to that of clypeatus, except the sculpture. Scapular spines more recurved. No trace of transverse pronotal crest. Mesonotal tooth slender, cylindrical, and pigmented. Mesoepinotal suture more or less distinct. Epinotal spine developed, projecting belong the enveloping border. Legs lacking foveolae. Femora angulate above, greatly inflated, upper face marginate distad, beginning from the angle. Basitarsus not quite as broad as in clypeatus.

Petiole transverse, slightly narrower than in clypeatus, lateral spines slender, blunt at apex, very little upturned. Ventral face with a small midventral hyaline tooth. Postpetiole slightly longer than petiole, the lateral teeth about half as long as the total width of the body.

Gaster circular, broadly surrounded by a horizontal, coarsely sculptured, laminate border which is notched mesially behind.

Foveolae indistinct to obsolete; pilosity consisting of long, silvery, appressed, and scalelike hair.

de Andrade and Baroni Urbani (1999) - Measurements (in mm) and indices: TL 6.56-7.36; HL 1.52-1.74; HW 2.44-2.70; EL 0.28-0.32; PW 2.52-2.88; PeW 0.95-1.08; PpW 0.89-1.04; HBaL 0.66-0.80; HBaW 0.23-0.25; CI 155.2-161.2; PI 93.7-100.0; PPeI 265.3-275.0; PPpI 276.9-286.9; HBaI 31.2-34.8.

Soldier
Kempf (1973) - Total length 8.0 mm; head length 2.56 mm; maximum head width 2.97 mm; maximum diameter of eyes 0.34 mm; Weber's length of thorax 2.59 mm; maximum width of pronotum 3.03 mm; gaster length 3.08 mm; gaster width 2.84 mm. Differs from the respective worker in the ensuing characters: Cephalic disc with sides subparallele, scarcely converging in front except for the anterior curvature; integument only superficially punctulate, quite shining, and densely foveolate bearing a simple appressed hair; vertex with a mesially strongly bidentate, transverse carina that attains the lateral margin at both sides; occiput vertically truncate behind this carina; eye stalk not detached from the head proper, yet between the upper orbit of eye and the rim of cephalic disc is a deeply excavated groove; thorax similarly sculptured as head on dorsum and sides of pronotum, the latter with a strongly elevated, foliaceous trans verse carina on dorsum which is semicircularly excised in the middle; in side-view, the anterior portion of the pronotum in front of the carina forms a right angle with the posterior portion behind the carina and the mesonotum; membranaceous borders of pronotum and propodeum narrower and the enelosed spines stronger, those of the propodeum shorter and morc upturned; gaster relatively more elongate and membranaceous border laterally somewhat narrower.

Intermediates have the transverse pronotal carinae more or less developed and the thoracic dorsum foveolate, but the cephalic sculpture is unvariably as in the worker, and they also lack the bidentate carina on vertex.

de Andrade and Baroni Urbani (1999) - Measurements (in mm) and indices: TL 8.44-9.08; HL 2.08-2.16; HW 2.88-3.00; EL 0.32-0.34; PW 3.00-3.04; PeW 1.16-1.20; PpW 1.08-1.12; HBaL 0.80-0.82; HBaW 0.27-0.28; CI 138.5-138.9; PI 94.7-100.0; PPeI 253.3-258.6; PPpI 271 .4-277.8; HBaI 32.9-35.0.

Queen
Kempf (1973) - With the same features as the soldier, but the head is rather subquadrate than transverse; transverse carinae of vertex and pronotum much lower, the former bidentatc in the middle; thorax and gaster lacking the encircling, semitransparent, laminate borders, except for the anterolateral corners of tergum I of gaster. Differs from the female of clypeatus as follows: integument subopaque, finely and densely punctulate throughout; foveolae on cephalic disc and thoracic dorsum denser, crowded; vertex of head with a transverse carina besides the pair of teeth; transverse carina of pronotum more elevated and foliaceous; propodeal spines longer and subacute; first tarsomere of hind leg long, not longer than, as tarsomeres 2 - 5 combined; lateral spines of postpetiole longer, about one half as long as length of postpetiole; tergum I of gaster anterolaterally narrowly crested but lacking the white spots encircled with black on each corner.

de Andrade and Baroni Urbani (1999) - Measurements (in mm) and indices: TL 11.76-12.40; HL 2.16-2.28; HW 2.44-2.68; EL 0.40-0.44; PW 2.60-2.68; PeW 0.82-0.92; PpW 1.24-1.32; HBaL 0.88-0.94; HBaW 0.28-0.29; CI 110.9-117.5; PI 91.0-101.5; PPeI 286.9-317.1; PPpI 200.0-209.7; HBaI 30.8-32.9.

Type Material




de Andrade and Baroni Urbani (1999):

Worker. Type locality: Brazil. Type material: not available for the present study.

Cryptocerus fervidus. Gyne. Type locality: Rio de Janeiro. Type material: Holotype Gyne in (Kempf, 1964 a: 438), examined.