Strumigenys boneti

Known from more than 20 collections from a range of habitat types. The bulk of this material was gathered from litter samples in woodland habitats. There is also a record of a collection of a ground forager. This is a relatively unusual record as Strumigenys are rarely observed foraging (Booher, 2021).

Identification
Bolton (2000) - A member of the Strumigenys ludia-group. Easily separated from Strumigenys ludia and Strumigenys idiogenes as both of these are larger and have a flagellate apicoscrobal hair, together with flagellate hairs at the pronotal humeri and on the mesonotum.

In the original description Brown compared boneti with Strumigenys mixta, a member of the louisianae group, which has very different dentition and scape pilosity; the two cannot be easily confused.

Distribution
Strumigenys boneti has a mainly Central American distribution with a range barely entering the USA, in two Texas counties (Hidalgo and Cameron) bordering the Rio Grande in at least seven localities in the most southern subtropical refugia of Texas. The collections of this species south of Texas tend to follow the Gulf and Atlantic states of Mexico into the Yucatán Peninsula, Guatemala, Belize, and Honduras (Booher, 2021).

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists
Nearctic Region: United States. Neotropical Region: Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico.

Nomenclature

 *  boneti. Strumigenys boneti Brown, 1959a: 103 (w.) MEXICO. See also: Bolton, 2000: 527.

Worker
Bolton (2000) - TL 2.1-2.3, HL 0.50-0.56, HW 0.43-0.47, CI 82-85, ML 0.30-0.31, MI 55-60, SL 0.32-0.34, SI 72-75, PW 0.28-0.29, AL 0.50-0.58 (3 measured).

Mandible sometimes without preapical dentition but usually a minute denticle present close to midlength of inner margin. Apicoscrobal hair and pronotal humeral hair stiff and stout, simple or slightly expanded to truncated apically. Cephalic dorsum with two pairs of short erect hairs, one near highest point of vertex, the other close to occipital margin. Dorsum of pronotum with 1-2 pairs, and dorsum of mesonotum with 1-3 pairs of short stout erect hairs. First gastral tergite with short stout standing hairs that are shallowly curved, simple to remiform. Pronotal dorsum reticulate-punctate, without longitudinal rugulae. Petiole node in dorsal view broader than long. Disc of postpetiole reticulate-punctate. First gastral tergite finely and densely reticulate-punctate to reticulate-shagreenate everywhere.

Type Material
Bolton (2000) - Holotype worker, MEXICO: Tabasco, Palmillas, 18.viii.1945, sample no. 1109 (F. Bonet); paratype workers, MEXICO: ridge between Antiguo Morelos and Nuevo Morelos, 18.xi.1948 (E. S. Ross); Cozumel, Quintana Roo, 16.vii.1951, #19 (L. J. Stannard) [examined].

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

 * Bolton, B. 2000. The Ant Tribe Dacetini. Memoirs of the American Entomological Institute 65
 * Brown W. L., Jr. 1959. The neotropical species of the ant genus Strumigenys Fr. Smith: group of emeryi Mann. Entomological News 70: 97-104.
 * Carrias E. S. 2009. A comparison of leaf litter ants in (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) the pine forests of North and Central America. Master's Thesis, Faculty of the Department Biological Sciences, Sam Houston State University, 73 pages.
 * Dattilo W. et al. 2019. MEXICO ANTS: incidence and abundance along the Nearctic-Neotropical interface. Ecology https://doi.org/10.1002/ecy.2944
 * Del Toro, I., M. Vázquez, W.P. Mackay, P. Rojas and R. Zapata-Mata. Hormigas (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) de Tabasco: explorando la diversidad de la mirmecofauna en las selvas tropicales de baja altitud. Dugesiana 16(1):1-14.
 * Fernandes, P.R. XXXX. Los hormigas del suelo en Mexico: Diversidad, distribucion e importancia (Hymenoptera: Formicidae).
 * Fernández, F. and S. Sendoya. 2004. Lista de las hormigas neotropicales. Biota Colombiana Volume 5, Number 1.
 * Kempf, W.W. 1972. Catalago abreviado das formigas da regiao Neotropical (Hym. Formicidae) Studia Entomologica 15(1-4).
 * Longino J. T. L., and M. G. Branstetter. 2018. The truncated bell: an enigmatic but pervasive elevational diversity pattern in Middle American ants. Ecography 41: 1-12.
 * Vásquez-Bolaños M. 2011. Lista de especies de hormigas (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) para México. Dugesiana 18: 95-133