Camponotus capito

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists
Australasian Region: Australia.

Nomenclature

 *  capito. Camponotus capito Mayr, 1876: 64 (s.w.) AUSTRALIA. Forel, 1915b: 99 (w.); Wheeler, G.C. & Wheeler, J. 1970: 650 (l.). Combination in C. (Myrmophyma): Forel, 1912i: 91. Provisional junior synonym of cinereus: Santschi, 1919a: 330. Revived from synonymy: Taylor & Brown, D.R. 1985: 110. Current subspecies: nominal plus ebeninithorax.

Description
Worker major Length 11-13mm. Ferruginous, legs generally ferruginous-testaceous, gaster black, mandibles chestnut; sparse upstanding pilosity, antennae and limbs with upstanding pilosity, dispersed and very fine, the sides of the thorax, metanotum (= propodeum) and coxa are densely pubescent; finely and superficially coriaceous and glossy, frons and vertex sparsely punctated on top, with the anterior half of the head opaque, finely and densely punctated with larger and dispersed pits, mandibles with coarse pits, opaque, with the spaces between the pits coriaceous, gaster sublaevi, with hair in the pits, transverse striations; clypeus is not keeled, moderately produced in front, anterior margin sub semicircular, emarginate and therefore bidentate; the head between the eyes is strongly convex, and depressed a little behind the eyes; thorax above the propodeum angle is convex, scutellum can be seen transversely, the basal part of the metanotum (= propodeum) is a little depressed; the node on the petiole is not high. Peak Downs in Queensland. (Museum Godeffroy)

Forel,A. (1915): Worker minor (not yet described) Length, 7.6-8.2mm  Head is rectangular almost 1/4 longer than wide with compressed sides distinctly flattened back of head with straight posterior border. From the convex eyes which are positioned close to the posterior border of the head. to the back corners, goes a very distinct blunt edge which separates the back of the head from the flattened sides (similar to ephippium). The vertex is not at all swollen. Pronotum approximately as wide as the head and like the head is only slightly glossy finely reticulate and rather strongly pubescent (the major worker is glossy smooth and almost without pubescence). As with the large worker the color is red with a black gaster otherwise like the major worker only the pubescence is stronger all over. The discovery of the minor and major together proves that a number of species which I had previously put in Myrmocameleus, I can now put into Myrmophyma. The same could happen for example with ephippium if one finds amongst them a major worker with a swollen vertex.

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

 * Heterick B. E. 2013. A taxonomic overview and key to the ants of Barrow Island, Western Australia. Records of the Western Australian Museum Supplement 83: 375-404.
 * Heterick B. E., B. Durrant, and N. R. Gunawardene. 2010. The ant fauna of the Pilbara Bioregion, Western Australia. Records of the Western Australian Museum, Supplement 78: 157-167.
 * Majer J. D., S. K. Callan, K. Edwards, N. R. Gunawardene, and C. K. Taylor. 2013. Baseline survey of the terrestrial invertebrate fauna of Barrow Island. Records of the Western Australian Museum Supplement 83: 13-112.