Pheidole adrianoi

Marcio Naves (1985) found P. adrianoi common within its range, nesting in sandy soil in clear areas within forests—a habitat also preferred by P. metallescens, which resembles it in the field to the naked eye. According to Stefan Cover (personal communication), adrianoi is typically associated with white-sand gaps in pine-oak forest. The nest entrance, surrounded by a crater of excavated soil, leads through a vertical tunnel 1–2 mm in diameter to a main chamber 30 to 40 cm beneath the surface. Mature colonies contain about 60 majors and more than 300 minors. Both castes engage in strictly diurnal foraging, and the majors participate in the retrieval of food. The main diet is seeds, although the workers also scavenge for small dead arthropods. The main flights of the winged sexual forms occur in July and August. (Wilson 2003)

Identification
See the description in the nomenclature section.

Distribution
Central and northern Florida, west to Okaloosa Co. in the Florida panhandle. (Wilson 2003)

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists
Nearctic Region: United States.

Biology
This species is known to remove seeds (Atchison & Lucky, 2022).

Worker
Minor

Images from AntWeb
Major

Nomenclature

 *  adrianoi. Pheidole adrianoi Naves, 1985: 56, figs. 25, 26, 33, 53, 54 (s.w.q.) U.S.A. See also: Wilson, 2003: 555.

Description
From Wilson (2003): DIAGNOSIS A small brown member of the pilifera group distinguished by the following combination of traits.

Major: diminished, nearly invisible mesonotal convexity; metanotal groove absent. Metanotal profile forming a continuous line with that of the propodeal basal face; propodeal spines long, thick, blunt-tipped; mesopleuron and sides of pronotum and propodeum completely covered by longitudinal carinulae, but promesonotal dorsum smooth and shiny; postpetiolar node diamond-shaped viewed from above.

Minor: profile of promesonotal dorsum smoothly convex; propodeal spines short and stout; mesopleuron and side of propodeum foveolate and opaque but lacking carinulae. Close to Pheidole davisi but differing in the above and other characters.

MEASUREMENTS (mm) Paratype major: HW 0.86, HL 0.92, SL 0.46, EL 0.14, PW 0.44. Paratype minor: HW 0.38, HL 0.42, SL 0.38, EL 0.10, PW 0.24.

COLOR Major: body mostly plain medium brown, gaster dark brown, appendages yellowish brown.

Minor: body medium to dark brown, appendages medium brown.



'''Figure. Upper: paratype, major. Lower: paratype, minor. Scale bars = 1 mm.'''

Type Material
FLORIDA: Gainesville, Alachua Co., Florida, col. Marcio A. Naves. (Wilson 2003) and  - as reported in Wilson (2003)

Etymology
Eponymous. (Wilson 2003)

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

 * Annotated Ant Species List Ordway-Swisher Biological Station. Downloaded at http://ordway-swisher.ufl.edu/species/os-hymenoptera.htm on 5th Oct 2010.
 * Braman C. A., and B. T. Forschler. 2018. Survey of Formicidae attracted to protein baits on Georgia’s Barrier Island dunes. Southeastern Naturalist 17(4): 645-653.
 * Deyrup M., C. Johnson, G. C. Wheeler, J. Wheeler. 1989. A preliminary list of the ants of Florida. Florida Entomologist 72: 91-101
 * Deyrup M., L. Deyrup, and J. Carrel. 2013. Ant Species in the Diet of a Florida Population of Eastern Narrow-Mouthed Toads, Gastrophryne carolinensis. Southeastern Naturalist 12(2): 367-378.
 * Deyrup, M. and J. Trager. 1986. Ants of the Archbold Biological Station, Highlands County, Florida (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Florida Entomologist 69(1):206-228
 * Forster J.A. 2005. The Ants (hymenoptera: Formicidae) of Alabama. Master of Science, Auburn University. 242 pages.
 * Ipser R. M. 2004. Native and exotic ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) of Georgia: Ecological Relationships with implications for development of biologically-based management strategies. Doctor of Philosophy thesis, University of Georgia. 165 pages.
 * Johnson C. 1986. A north Florida ant fauna (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Insecta Mundi 1: 243-246
 * MacGown J. A., J. G. Hill, and M. Deyrup. 2009. Ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) of the Little Ohoopee River Dunes, Emanuel County, Georgia. J. Entomol. Sci. 44(3): 193-197.
 * MacGown, J.A and J.A. Forster. 2005. A preliminary list of the ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) of Alabama, U.S.A. Entomological News 116(2):61-74
 * Wilson, E.O. 2003. Pheidole in the New World: A Dominant, Hyperdiverse Genus. Harvard University Press