Formica foreli

Identification
Bicoloured with head and gaster mainly dark and with a pronounced dark patch on promesonotum. Eyes without hairs and dorsal body hairs restricted to front of clypeus and apical tergites of gaster. Maxillary palps very short either 5 or 6 segmented, not reaching back beyond front eye margin. Pubescent hairs on gaster longer than their interspace. First gaster tergite somewhat dull, not shining. Clypeus normally slightly impressed below midline when seen in profile. Head and scale strongly excised. Length: 4.5-7.0mm (Collingwood 1979).

Distribution
Central Europe, rather local - France to Caucasus, Switzerland to Poland and Denmark.

This taxon was described from Switzerland.

Biology
This species nests in small flat mounds of grass and heather litter on banks in open lowland heath. Habits are similar to those of F. exsecta (Collingwood 1979).

Nomenclature

 *  foreli. Formica foreli Bondroit, 1918: 65 (w.q.m.) SWITZERLAND. [First available use of Formica exsecta subsp. pressilabris var. foreli Emery, 1909b: 192; unavailable name.] Combination in F. (Coptoformica): Müller, 1923: 146. Subspecies of pressilabris: Müller, 1923: 146. Revived status as species: Dlussky, 1964: 1033; Bernard, 1967: 324; Kutter, 1977c: 284. Junior synonym of pressilabris: Arakelian, 1994: 97; Seifert, 1994: 41. Revived status as species and senior synonym of goesswaldi, naefi, tamarae: Seifert, 2000a: 543.
 * naefi. Formica (Coptoformica) naefi Kutter, 1957: 4, figs. 1-6 (w.q.m.) SWITZERLAND. Junior synonym of foreli: Seifert, 2000a: 543. See also: Kutter, 1977c: 285.
 * tamarae. Formica (Coptoformica) tamarae Dlussky, 1964: 1033, figs. (w.q.m.) CAUCASUS. Junior synonym of pressilabris: Arakelian, 1994: 97; of foreli: Seifert, 2000a: 543.
 * goesswaldi. Formica (Coptoformica) goesswaldi Kutter, 1967a: 234, figs. 15-22 (w.q.m.) GERMANY. Junior synonym of foreli: Seifert, 2000a: 544. See also: Kutter, 1977c: 284.

Additional References

 * Collingwood, C. A. 1979. The Formicidae (Hymenoptera) of Fennoscandia and Denmark. Fauna Entomol. Scand. 8:1-174.