Hypoponera ursa

Identification
See the nomenclature sections of Hypoponera dema for similar species and diagnostic characters.

Distribution
This taxon was described from Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Nomenclature

 *  ursa. Ponera ursa Santschi, 1924b: 197 (w.q.) DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO. Combination in P. (Hypoponera): Santschi, 1938b: 79; in Hypoponera: Bolton, 1995b: 216. See also: Bolton & Fisher, 2011: 110.

Worker
Bolton and Fisher (2011) - Measurements: HL 0.62, HW 0.51, HS 0.565, SL 0.44, PrW 0.38, WL 0.80, HFL 0.42, PeNL 0.18, PeH 0.39, PeNW 0.26, PeS 0.277. Indices: CI 82, SI 86, PeNI 68, LPeI 46, DPeI 156.

Answers the description of Hypoponera jeanneli and apparently is only separated from it by the proportions of the funicular segments, as noted in the key. This is not satisfactory because the degree of telescoping and variation of this character in ursa cannot be assessed, and also the view of its funiculus is somewhat distorted by the glue in which it is embedded. For the present it is regarded, somewhat arbitrarily, as dividing the two taxa and this status will have to suffice until the fauna is better known. In ursa the sum of the lengths of funicular segments 7–10, divided by the sum of their widths, gives a ratio of about 1.68 in the syntype. In jeanneli and the closely related Hypoponera quaestio the ratio is 1.20–1.46.

Type Material
Syntype workers and queen, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO: Ruwenzori, 2000 m (Bequaert) [examined].

Additional References

 * Bolton, B. & Fisher, B.L. 2011. Taxonomy of Afrotropical and West Palaearctic ants of the ponerine genus Hypoponera Santschi. Zootaxa 2843: 1-118.