Cephalotes flavigaster

Identification
Species included in the clade: Cephalotes argentiventris, Cephalotes auricomus, Cephalotes flavigaster, Cephalotes hamulus, Cephalotes resinae, Cephalotes taino, Cephalotes unimaculatus, Cephalotes vinosus.

Distribution
This taxon was described from Dominican Republic.

Nomenclature

 *  flavigaster. Cephalotes flavigaster De Andrade, in De Andrade & Baroni Urbani, 1999: 108, fig. 37 (w.) DOMINICAN REPUBLIC.

Description
Type Material : holotype worker from the Dominican Republic, Constanza, 3-4,000 ft, August, 1 93 8 (Darlington) (MCZq. Paratypes: another worker, same data as the holotype; a worker, Dominican Republic, Constanza to Jarabacoa, 2-4,000 ft, August 1 938, Darlington (both MCZC. Derivation : from the Latin flavus (= reddish-yellow) and gaster (= abdomen), referred to the distinctive coloration of this species. Diagnosis. - A member of the hamulus clade characterised by a completely orange first gastral tergite and by sparse pilosity. Worker. - Vertexal angles round, with crenulate margin; vertexal margin concave medially. Vertex with a trace of transversal carina and a median pair of small denticles. Cheeks marginate. Eyes convex. Mesosoma robust, convex in side view. Scapular angles bearing a small denticle, more developed in the paratypes than in the holotype. Pro notal border anteriorly marked by a carina more impressed in the holotype than in the remaining specimens, slightly smaller. Humeral angles bearing each an obtuse spine directed anteriorly. Pro notal sides straight, ending posteriorly in a small, round tooth visible in dorsal view. Promesonotal suture impressed. Mesonotal teeth either rounded and poorly developed (holotype), or absent, or small and pointed. Propodeal suture deeply impressed dorsally. Propodeum ca. 1 14 narrower than mesonotum, with differentiate basal and declivous faces. Basal face slightly more than 1 13 broader than long, with a small denticle anteriorly, straightening posteriorly; declivous face as long as the basal face, with slightly converging sides posteriorly. Propodeal spines as long as (holotype) or slightly shorter than the basal face of the propodeum, thick in most specimens, diverging. Petiole more than 1 13 broader than long, its anterior face truncated and marginate dorsally by a crenulate carina shortly interrupted in the middle; its sides converging posteriorly and bearing a small spine anteriorly, absent in one paratype, and a pointed tooth medially. Postpetiole more than 1 /2 broader than longer; postpetiolar spines broad and rounded (holotype) or pointed (paratypes), inserted anteriorly and curved backwards. Gaster with a lamellaceous narrow anterior border reaching the first gastral stigma at maXImum. Legs as in argentiventris. Sculpture. Head minutely and deeply reticulate; vertexal area covered by broad, irregular foveae gradually shallower towards the eyes. Anterior part of the hcad with small and superficial foveae. Frontal carinae faintly rugulose. Ventral side of the head laterally covered by thick, sinuous striae. Hypostomal area deeply reticulate. Cheeks reticulate and superficially rugulose. Mesosoma, petiole and postpetiole covered by longitudinal sinuous striae and superficial reticulation. Declivous face of the propodeum with irregular longitudinal striae and reticulate. First gastral tergite reticulate and with superficial, sparse, small, piligerous foveae. Corresponding sternite with superficial longitudinal rugosities and impressed reticulation on the sides, ventrally with superficial reticulation and slightly shining. Legs as in argentiventris. Pilosity. As in argentiventris except for the first gastral tergite which bears thin, sparse hairs. Colour. Black. Frontal carinae, tips of the pronotal, propodeal and peduncular spines, and last tarsomeres dark orange to light brown; remaining funicular joints brown. First gastral tergite opaque orange, the rest black. Measurements (in mm) and indices: TL 6.20-7.20; HL 1 .56.-1 .72; HW 1 .76-1 .92; EL 0.48-0.52; PW 1 .60-1 .84; PeW 0.64-0.75; PpW 0.85-0.90; HBaL 0.64 -0.70; HBaW 0.1 8-0.20; CI 1 1 1 .6-1 12.8; PI 1 04.3-1 10.0; PPeI 235.3- 250.0; PPpI 1 90.4-204.4; HBaI 27.2-28.5. M a t e r i a I e x a m i n e d : Dominican Republic: Constanza, 3-4,000 ft., August, 1 938, 2 workers (holotype and paratype), DARLINGTON [MCZC]; Constanza to Jarabacoa, 2-4,000 ft., August 1 938, 1 worker (paratype), DARLINGTON [MCZC]. Discussion. - C. flavigaster is the sister species of the copal species taino. Both species share the orange gaster and the irregular striation. KEMPF (1951) recorded the presence of two workers with reddish-orange gaster from Bizoton, Haiti, in the collection of the U. S. National Museum. He considered these specimens as "perhaps intergrades between unimaculatus and vinosus". One of the paratypes of flavigaster also shows a vestigial postero-median black strip on the first gastral tergite as the specimen from Bizoton mentioned by KEMPF (1. c.). We regard the specimens listed above as representing a good species for the unique possession of sinuous striation, first gastral tergite orange and pilosity sparse. Each of these three characters can be used to separate at glance flavigaster from unimaculatus and from vinosus, two species with more regular striae, with denser pilosity and with different gastral coloration. We did not see the two specimens from Bizoton mentioned by KEMPF ( 1 95 1 ), but they are likely to be close to or identical with flavigaster.