Atta mexicana

Identification Keys including this Taxon
Key to US Atta species

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

Nomenclature

 * . Oecodoma mexicana Smith, F. 1858b: 185, pl. 10, fig. 20 (q.m.) MEXICO (no state data).
 * Norton, 1868c: 9 (s.w.).
 * Combination in Atta: Roger, 1863b: 35;
 * combination in Atta (Archeatta): Gonçalves, 1942: 343.
 * Junior synonym of fervens: Roger, 1863b: 35; Mayr, 1865: 81; Forel, 1885a: 362; Mayr, 1886d: 442; Dalla Torre, 1893: 152; Forel, 1899c: 33.
 * Subspecies of insularis: Emery, 1913b: 259; Emery, 1924d: 354.
 * Status as species: Mayr, 1863: 438; Norton, 1868a: 66; Norton, 1868c: 9; Wheeler, W.M. 1907c: 703; Wheeler, W.M. 1934f: 140; Wheeler, W.M. 1935g: 34; Gonçalves, 1942: 343; Borgmeier, 1950d: 261; Smith, M.R. 1951a: 832; Smith, M.R. 1958c: 138; Borgmeier, 1959b: 351 (redescription); Smith, M.R. 1967: 363; Kempf, 1972a: 27; Hunt & Snelling, 1975: 22; Smith, D.R. 1979: 1413; Cherrett & Cherrett, 1989: 53; Bolton, 1995b: 76; Branstetter & Sáenz, 2012: 257.

Description
Female. Length 8-9 lines. Obscurely ferruginous, nearly black;closely resembling Atta cephalotes, but the thorax is more elongate; the second node of the abdomen wider, with the lateral angels produced and acute; the base of the abdomen truncated, the first segment longer than broad; in other respects resembling Atta cephalotes, but more hairy or downy.

Male. In size and form resembling the male of Atta cephalotes but of a uniform pale reddish yellow; the second abdominal node much wider.

The insect described as Atta laevigata is probably the worker of this species; in the Museum are several specimens from Mexico.

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

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 * Author Unknown. 2004. Mirmecofauna (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) comu?n del estero El Salado y Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, Me?xico. Dugesiana 11(1):13-20.
 * Cancino, E.R., D.R. Kasparan, J.M.A. Coronado Blanco, S.N. Myartseva, V.A. Trjapitzin, S.G. Hernandez Aguilar and J. Garcia Jimenez. 2010. Himenópteros de la Reserva El Cielo, Tamaulipas, México. Dugesiana 17(1):53-71
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 * Dattilo W. et al. 2019. MEXICO ANTS: incidence and abundance along the Nearctic-Neotropical interface. Ecology https://doi.org/10.1002/ecy.2944
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 * Mintzer, A. 1979. Foraging activity of the Mexican leafcutting antAtta mexicana (F. Smith), in a sonoran desert habitat (Hymenoptera, Formicidae). Insectes Sociaux 26(4): 364-372.
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