Gnamptogenys mordax

A common dweller of humid forests.

Identification
A member of the mordax subgroup (in the mordax species group). Size (HW 1.08-2.08; WL 1.66-2.92 mm) and sculpture patterns of this widespread and timid species is quite variable. Mandibles subtriangular; declivitous propodeal face transversely costulate; gastric tergum II can vary from smooth to longitudinally costulate or costulate-rugose. Body very dark, brown, almost black; legs dark brown. Smaller individuals can be confused with Gnamptogenys continua. (Lattke 1995)

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists
Neotropical Region: Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Honduras, Mexico, Panama, Peru, Suriname.

Nomenclature

 * . Ponera mordax Smith, F. 1858b: 98 (w.q.) BRAZIL (Rio de Janeiro).
 * Type-material: 3 syntype workers, 1 syntype queen.
 * Type-locality: Brazil: Rio (= Rio de Janeiro), “57/63” (H. Clark).
 * Type-depository: BMNH.
 * Borgmeier, 1937b: 220 (m.); Wheeler, G.C. & Wheeler, J. 1952a: 134 (l.).
 * Combination in Ectatomma (Gnamptogenys): Emery, 1894c: 145;
 * combination in Gnamptogenys: Mann, 1922: 3; Brown, 1958g: 228, 319; Camacho, Franco, Branstetter, et al. 2022: 11.
 * Status as species: Mayr, 1863: 449; Mayr, 1886c: 358; Dalla Torre, 1893: 40; Emery, 1894c: 145; Forel, 1895b: 116, 140; Emery, 1896g: 49; Forel, 1899c: 9; Emery, 1906c: 113; Forel, 1908c: 340; Emery, 1911d: 45; Bruch, 1914: 213; Wheeler, W.M. 1916c: 2; Gallardo, 1918b: 43; Luederwaldt, 1918: 34; Mann, 1922: 3; Borgmeier, 1923: 60; Eidmann, 1936a: 33; Borgmeier, 1937b: 219; Brown, 1958g: 228, 319; Kempf, 1972a: 113; Kempf & Lenko, 1976: 51; Lattke, 1990b: 16; Bolton, 1995b: 209; Lattke, 1995: 176; Lattke, et al. 2004: 347; Lattke, et al. 2007: 260 (in key); Lattke, et al. 2008: 94; Feitosa, 2015c: 98; Guénard & Economo, 2015: 226; Feitosa & Prada-Achiardi, 2019: 672; Camacho, et al. 2020: 458 (in key); Marcineiro & Lattke, 2020: 4 (in key); Camacho, Franco, Branstetter, et al. 2022: 11.
 * Synonym of nodosa (nomen oblitum): Brown, 1958g: 228, 320; Kempf, 1972a: 113; Bolton, 1995b: 209; Lattke, 1995: 176.
 * Senior synonym of purensis: Brown, 1958g: 228, 320; Kempf, 1972a: 113; Bolton, 1995b: 209; Lattke, 1995: 176.
 * Senior synonym of sebastiani: Brown, 1958g: 228, 320; Kempf, 1972a: 113; Bolton, 1995b: 209; Lattke, 1995: 176.
 * Distribution: Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, Suriname, Trinidad, Venezuela.
 * purensis. Ectatomma (Gnamptogenys) mordax var. purensis Forel, 1912c: 33 (w.) BRAZIL (Rio Grande do Sul).
 * Type-material: syntype workers (number not stated).
 * Type-locality: Brazil: Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, upper Purus (Huber).
 * Type-depositories: MHNG, NHMB.
 * Subspecies of mordax: Borgmeier, 1923: 61.
 * Junior synonym of mordax: Brown, 1958g: 228; Kempf, 1972a: 113; Bolton, 1995b: 210; Lattke, 1995: 176.
 * sebastiani. Ectatomma (Gnamptogenys) mordax subsp. sebastiani Borgmeier, 1937b: 220 (w.) BRAZIL (Goiás).
 * Type-material: 9 syntype workers.
 * Type-locality: Brazil: Goyaz (= Goiás), Campinas, 6.v.1933 (S. Schwarzmaier).
 * Type-depository: IBVR (perhaps also in MZSP).
 * Junior synonym of mordax: Brown, 1958g: 228; Kempf, 1972a: 113; Bolton, 1995b: 210; Lattke, 1995: 176.

Ponera mordax

Three worker syntypes and one queen syntype in. Labelled “Rio,” and “57/63.” Acc. Reg.: “1857 no. 63 (June 22). Province of Rio. Presented by Rev. Hamlet Clark.”

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

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 * Borgmeier T. 1923. Catalogo systematico e synonymico das formigas do Brasil. 1 parte. Subfam. Dorylinae, Cerapachyinae, Ponerinae, Dolichoderinae. Archivos do Museu Nacional (Rio de Janeiro) 24: 33-103.
 * Bruch C. 1914. Catálogo sistemático de los formícidos argentinos. Revista del Museo de La Plata 19: 211-234.
 * Cuezzo, F. 1998. Formicidae. Chapter 42 in Morrone J.J., and S. Coscaron (dirs) Biodiversidad de artropodos argentinos: una perspectiva biotaxonomica Ediciones Sur, La Plata. Pages 452-462.
 * Dattilo W. et al. 2019. MEXICO ANTS: incidence and abundance along the Nearctic-Neotropical interface. Ecology https://doi.org/10.1002/ecy.2944
 * Emery C. 1896. Studi sulle formiche della fauna neotropica. XVII-XXV. Bullettino della Società Entomologica Italiana 28: 33-107.
 * Emery C. 1906. Studi sulle formiche della fauna neotropica. XXVI. Bullettino della Società Entomologica Italiana 37: 107-194.
 * Emery C. 1911. Hymenoptera. Fam. Formicidae. Subfam. Ponerinae. Genera Insectorum 118: 1-125.
 * Fernández F., and T. M. Arias-Penna. 2008. Las hormigas cazadoras en la región Neotropical. Pp. 3-39 in: Jiménez, E.; Fernández, F.; Arias, T.M.; Lozano-Zambrano, F. H. (eds.) 2008. Sistemática, biogeografía y conservación de las hormigas cazadoras de Colombia. Bogotá: Instituto de Investigación de Recursos Biológicos Alexander von Humboldt, xiv + 609 pp.
 * Fernández, F. and S. Sendoya. 2004. Lista de las hormigas neotropicales. Biota Colombiana Volume 5, Number 1.
 * Forel A. 1908. Ameisen aus Sao Paulo (Brasilien), Paraguay etc. gesammelt von Prof. Herm. v. Ihering, Dr. Lutz, Dr. Fiebrig, etc. Verhandlungen der Kaiserlich-Königlichen Zoologisch-Botanischen Gesellschaft in Wien 58: 340-418.
 * Franco W., N. Ladino, J. H. C. Delabie, A. Dejean, J. Orivel, M. Fichaux, S. Groc, M. Leponce, and R. M. Feitosa. 2019. First checklist of the ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) of French Guiana. Zootaxa 4674(5): 509-543.
 * Gallardo A. 1918. Las hormigas de la República Argentina. Subfamilia Ponerinas. Anales del Museo Nacional de Historia Natural de Buenos Aires 30: 1-112.
 * Groc S., J. H. C. Delabie, F. Fernandez, M. Leponce, J. Orivel, R. Silvestre, Heraldo L. Vasconcelos, and A. Dejean. 2013. Leaf-litter ant communities (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in a pristine Guianese rainforest: stable functional structure versus high species turnover. Myrmecological News 19: 43-51.
 * INBio Collection (via Gbif)
 * Kempf W. W. 1978. A preliminary zoogeographical analysis of a regional ant fauna in Latin America. 114. Studia Entomologica 20: 43-62.
 * Kempf W. W., and K. Lenko. 1976. Levantamento da formicifauna no litoral norte e ilhas adjacentes do Estado de São Paulo, Brasil. I. Subfamilias Dorylinae, Ponerinae e Pseudomyrmecinae (Hym., Formicidae). Studia Entomologica 19: 45-66.
 * Kempf, W.W. 1972. Catalago abreviado das formigas da regiao Neotropical (Hym. Formicidae) Studia Entomologica 15(1-4).
 * Kusnezov N. 1978. Hormigas argentinas: clave para su identificación. Miscelánea. Instituto Miguel Lillo 61:1-147 + 28 pl.
 * Lattke J. E. 1995. Revision of the ant genus Gnamptogenys in the New World (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Journal of Hymenoptera Research 4: 137-193
 * Lattke, J. E. 1990b. Revisión del género Gnamptogenys Roger en Venezuela (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Acta Terramaris 2: 1-47
 * Longino J. T., and R. K. Colwell. 2011. Density compensation, species composition, and richness of ants on a neotropical elevational gradient. Ecosphere 2(3): 16pp.
 * Maes, J.-M. and W.P. MacKay. 1993. Catalogo de las hormigas (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) de Nicaragua. Revista Nicaraguense de Entomologia 23.
 * Silvestre R., C. R. F. Brandão, and R. R. Silva da 2003. Grupos funcionales de hormigas: el caso de los gremios del cerrado. Pp. 113-148 in: Fernández, F. (ed.) 2003. Introducción a las hormigas de la región Neotropical. Bogotá: Instituto de Investigación de Recursos Biológicos Alexander von Humboldt, xxvi + 424 pp.
 * Vittar, F. 2008. Hormigas (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) de la Mesopotamia Argentina. INSUGEO Miscelania 17(2):447-466
 * Vásquez-Bolaños M. 2011. Lista de especies de hormigas (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) para México. Dugesiana 18: 95-133
 * Wheeler W. M. 1916. Ants collected in British Guiana by the expedition of the American Museum of Natural History during 1911. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 35: 1-14.