Strumigenys castanea

Two collections from little samples were found in wet forest. The type material was collected from a Columbian orchid being imported into the United States.

Identification
A member of the Strumigenys schulzi-group.

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists
Neotropical Region: Colombia, Venezuela.

Nomenclature

 *  castanea. Smithistruma (Smithistruma) castanea Brown, 1953g: 107 (w.) COLOMBIA. Combination in Pyramica: Bolton, 1999: 1673; in Strumigenys: Baroni Urbani & De Andrade, 2007: 117. See also: Bolton, 2000: 217.

Worker
Bolton (2000) - TL 1.9-2.0, HL 0.53-0.55, HW 0.41-0.43, CI 76-78, ML 0.08-0.09, MI 15-17, SL 0.22-0.24, SI 57-59, PW 0.27-0.28, AL 0.52-0.55 (3 measured).

Answering the description of Strumigenys schulzi and only separable from that species by the shape of the petiole node in dorsal view. In schulzi this is fairly obviously broader than long, while in castanea it is longer than broad. S. schulzi, as currently conceived, shows noticeable variation (see description and discussion). It may be that castanea should be included in that species, or that schulzi is really a compound of more than one genuine species, but whilst so little material of either is available it is impossible to judge the significance of the variation.

Type Material
Bolton (2000) - Holotype worker and paratype workers, COLOMBIA: U.S. Plant Quarantine, no. EQA 432835, Lot No. 37-23832, Colombia, 10.1.37, on orchid pseudobulb [examined].