Temnothorax tuberum

Identification
Colour varies from entirely pale yellowish brown with the head pale to almost black and the dorsum of the gaster brownish. The antennal clubs are brown to brownish black contrasting with the rest of the funiculus. The head and clypeus are longitudinally striate and the alitrunk rugose. The petiole node has a distinct but short truncate dorsal area; propodeal spines are very short but quite distinct. Length: 2.3-3.4 mm (Collingwood 1979).

Distribution
A common and very widely distributed species in the mountains of Central Europe from Spain to the Caucasus and North Italy to Central Sweden (Collingwood 1979).

This taxon was described from Sweden.

Biology
Collingwood (1979) - This species characteristically nests in small single queened colonies under stones and in rock crevices. In Scandinavia it is restricted to warm lowland habitats. The alatae are found in July and August.

The original and very brief description was based on Swedish material but the types are lost. Most Scandinavian samples have dark heads and could be referred to the supposed species L. nigriceps Mayr, 1855. In England where L. tuberum is locally abundant along the south coast, the colour tends to be uniformly pale but samples also occur with dark heads and there are no structural differences between dark headed and light coloured series.

Nomenclature

 *  tuberum. Formica tuberum Fabricius, 1775: 393 (w.) SWEDEN. Lepeletier, 1835: 183 (q.m.); Nylander, 1846a: 939 (q.m.); Adlerz, 1886: 82 (gynandromorph); Hauschteck, 1962: 219 (k.). Combination in Manica: Jurine, 1807: 279; in Leptothorax: Mayr, 1855: 442; in Temnothorax: Bolton, 2003: 271. Senior synonym of tuberosa: Stephens, 1829: 356; Dalla Torre, 1893: 127; of melanocephalus: Casevitz-Weulersse, 1990b: 420; of acutinodis: Arakelian, 1994: 58; of pratostepposus: Radchenko, 1994d: 157 (in key); of alaicus, ciscaucasicus, nigricephalus, stipaceus: Radchenko, 1995c: 14. Material of the nomen nudum nigroscutellata referred here by Emery, 1914e: 2. See also: Baroni Urbani, 1971c: 124; Tarbinsky, 1976: 96; Kutter, 1977c: 134; Collingwood, 1979: 75; Atanassov & Dlussky, 1992: 142; Orledge, 1998: 25. Current subspecies: nominal plus nylanderounifasciatus, tuberonigriceps.
 * tuberosa. Formica tuberosa Latreille, 1802c: 259 (w.q.) FRANCE. Erroneous rendering and hence junior synonym of tuberum: Stephens, 1829: 356; Dalla Torre, 1893: 127.
 * melanocephalus. Leptothorax melanocephalus Emery, 1870: 197 (w.) FRANCE (Corsica). Subspecies of tuberum: André, 1883a: 298; Forel, 1890a: lxxiv; Emery, 1891b: 5; Santschi, 1919e: 242. Status as species: Bondroit, 1920a: 154; Baroni Urbani, 1971c: 115; Collingwood, 1978: 70; Atanassov & Dlussky, 1992: 138. Junior synonym of tuberum: Casevitz-Weulersse, 1990b: 420.
 * stipaceus. Leptothorax tuberum subsp. stipaceus Ruzsky, 1905b: 586 (w.q.m.) RUSSIA. Raised to species: Ruzsky, 1925b: 45. See also: Arnol'di, 1971: 1825. Junior synonym of tuberum: Radchenko, 1995c: 14.
 * nigricephala. Leptothorax (Leptothorax) tuberum var. nigricephala Karavaiev, 1930b: 146 (w.q.) SWEDEN. [Also described as new by Karavaiev, 1931e: 212.] Junior synonym of tuberum: Radchenko, 1995c: 14.
 * alaicus. Leptothorax tuberum subsp. alaicus Tarbinsky, 1976: 97 (w.) KYRGYZSTAN. Junior synonym of tuberum: Radchenko, 1995c: 14.
 * acutinodis. Leptothorax tuberum subsp. acutinodis Arnol'di, 1977a: 204 (w.) ARMENIA. [Leptothorax tuberum subsp. acutinodis Arnol'di, 1948: 211. Nomen nudum.] Junior synonym of tuberum: Arakelian, 1994: 58; Radchenko, 1995c: 15.
 * ciscaucasicus. Leptothorax tuberum subsp. ciscaucasicus Arnol'di, 1977a: 204 (w.q.) RUSSIA. Junior synonym of tuberum: Radchenko, 1995c: 15.
 * pratostepposus. Leptothorax pratostepposus Arnol'di, 1977a: 202 (w.q.) RUSSIA. Junior synonym of tuberum: Radchenko, 1994d: 157 (in key); Radchenko, 1995c: 14.

Additional References

 * [[Media:Arnol'di 1977a.pdf|Arnol'di, K. V. 1977a. New and little known ant species of the genus Leptothorax Mayr (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) in the European USSR and the Caucasus. Entomol. Obozr. 56: 198-204 PDF]]