Aphaenogaster ovaticeps

This species has the highest predisposition to inhabit very humid and shady locations. Workers were observed active during the day, but only in dark places, such as stream valleys inside plane forests or other deciduous forests, rocky walls, damp rock walls, boulders, stones or damp litter. They were also regularly collected on the walls of watering holes built in mountain villages as a place of rest. Occasionally workers were collected in xerothermic oak forests, mixed or coniferous forests but always in their most humid and dark parts. Also, they were often observed on the rocky walls of the gorges, especially on limestone rocks. In mountains above the upper forest limit specimens were collected in rock crevices or on shady walls of chapels, churches or shelters. One colony was observed inside the ruins of an ancient church. On islands some specimens were observed also at the entrance parts of dump caves. Aphaenogaster ovaticeps has monogynous colonies, nests under stone, and the highest number of workers observed in a nest did not exceed 50 individuals (Salata et al., 2021).

Identification
A member of the Aphaenogaster splendida-group.

Salata et al. (2021) - A very distinct species. Together with Aphaenogaster peloponnesiaca they create a complex of species with regularly oval head similarly converging anterad and posterad. Aphaenogaster ovaticeps differs in brown to dark brown color of head and mesosoma, and flat propodeal dorsum while in A. peloponnesiaca body is yellow to rusty-yellow and propodeal dorsum is distinctly convex. From other species of the A. splendida species-group the most similar is Aphaenogaster splendida, due to slim body and elongated and slim antennae and legs, but differs in pale yellow head and mesosoma, less regularly oval head almost parallel-sided in the middle, and stronger head sculpture. Aphaenogaster aktaci and Aphaenogaster rugosoferruginea are the only members of the A. splendida species-group with dark body coloration, but differ in not regularly oval head with stronger sculpture. Aphaenogaster aktaci differs also in longitudinal not transverse rugosities on the top of propodeum and stronger propodeal spines with elongated anterior carina. Aphaenogaster rugosoferruginea differs also in stouter body and legs, and hind femora distinctly swollen in the middle.

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists
Palaearctic Region: Albania, Greece, Italy, Republic of Macedonia.

Nomenclature

 * . Stenamma (Aphaenogaster) ovaticeps Emery, 1898c: 136, figs. (w.q.m.) ITALY.
 * Combination in Aphaenogaster: Emery, 1908c: 324;
 * combination in Aphaenogaster (Attomyrma): Emery, 1921f: 58.
 * Status as species: Emery, 1908c: 324; Forel, 1913d: 428; Emery, 1916b: 130; Bondroit, 1918: 159; Emery, 1921f: 58; Finzi, 1923: 3; Müller, 1923b: 55; Finzi, 1930d: 312; Zimmermann, 1935: 14; Baroni Urbani, 1962: 130; Bernard, 1967: 136 (redescription); Baroni Urbani, 1971c: 50; Agosti & Collingwood, 1987a: 54; Agosti & Collingwood, 1987b: 270 (in key); Collingwood, 1993b: 194; Bolton, 1995b: 71; Poldi, et al. 1995: 3; Petrov, 2006: 90 (in key); Legakis, 2011: 7; Borowiec, L. & Salata, 2012: 466; Borowiec, L. 2014: 15; Lebas, et al. 2016: 262.
 * muelleriana. Aphaenogaster ovaticeps subsp. muelleriana Wolf, 1915: 44, figs. 5, 6 (w.) ITALY.
 * [Aphaenogaster ovaticeps subsp. muelleriana Wolf, in Emery, 1914d: 156. Nomen nudum.]
 * Emery, 1916b: 140 (q.m.); Finzi, 1927a: 8 (m.).
 * Combination in Aphaenogaster (Attomyrma): Emery, 1921f: 58.
 * Subspecies of ovaticeps: Emery, 1916b: 130; Emery, 1921f: 58; Finzi, 1922: 119; Finzi, 1923: 3; Müller, 1923b: 55; Soudek, 1925b: 14; Finzi, 1927a: 8; Zimmermann, 1935: 13; Baroni Urbani, 1962: 130; Baroni Urbani, 1971c: 51.
 * Status as species: Agosti & Collingwood, 1987a: 54; Agosti & Collingwood, 1987b: 270 (in key); Schulz, A. 1994a: 423; Bolton, 1995b: 71; Poldi, et al. 1995: 3; Bračko, 2006: 135; Petrov, 2006: 90 (in key); Bračko, 2007: 17; Karaman, M.G. 2011b: 18; Legakis, 2011: 7; Borowiec, L. & Salata, 2012: 465; Borowiec, L. 2014: 15; Lebas, et al. 2016: 262; Salata & Borowiec, 2018c: 42.
 * Junior synonym of ovaticeps: Salata et al., 2021: 314.

Type Material

 * Aphaenogaster ovaticeps: Syntype worker: “Genova M |16.V 1803 || CM || Aphaenogaster | ovaticeps | Emery || Typus || ANTWEB | CASENT | 0904170 (MSNG); AntWeb, CASEN0904170, photos by Zach Lieberman, available on https://www.AntWeb.org (Salata et al., 2021).
 * Aphaenogaster muelleriana: Holotype worker: Aph. Ovaticeps | Em. | v. mülleriana | Wolf | Trieste |Finzi leg|| Coll. | A. Forel || Cotypus || ANTWEB | CASENT0907689 (MHNG), personally investigated (Salata et al., 2021).

The investigated specimen of Aphaenogaster muelleriana has “Cotypus” label but according to the original description this taxon was described from a single specimen, thus it should be considered as a holotype. Specimens from Trieste collected by Finzi and photographed on AntWeb as FOCOL1227 and FOCOL1228 noted as “Type” are not true syntypes (Salata et al., 2021).

Taxonomic Notes
Salata et al. (2021) - Emery (1898) described Aphaenogaster ovaticeps based on two workers and one male from Genoa, Italy and 6 gynes, one male and one worker from Albania, Pindos and Preveza (now Greece, Epirus Province). He also designated Italian specimens as types of this species and additionally noted differences between male from Genoa and male from Pindos. Aphaenogaster ovaticeps is only known from two close sites which are urban sites in Italy’s Liguria. Both, types and additional specimens from this population have been defined multiple times as morphologically indistinguishable from Aphaenogaster muelleriana (Scupola 2017), and our investigation supported this conclusion. Study of the photographs of the syntype of A. ovaticeps, available on AntWeb, and its measurements show no differences between this specimen and majority of our material of Greek populations of A. muelleriana. Thus, we decided to recognize A. muelleriana as a junior synonym of A. ovaticeps.

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

 * Agosti, D. and C.A. Collingwood. 1987. A provisional list of the Balkan ants (Hym. Formicidae) and a key to the worker caste. I. Synonymic list. Mitteilungen der Schweizerischen Entomologischen Gesellschaft, 60: 51-62
 * Andoni V. 1977. Kontribut mbi Himenopteret e familjes Formicidae te vendit tone. Buletini I Shkencave te Natyres 31(2): 93-101.
 * Bernard F. 1967. Faune de l'Europe et du Bassin Méditerranéen. 3. Les fourmis (Hymenoptera Formicidae) d'Europe occidentale et septentrionale. Paris: Masson, 411 pp.
 * Borowiec L. 2014. Catalogue of ants of Europe, the Mediterranean Basin and adjacent regions (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Genus (Wroclaw) 25(1-2): 1-340.
 * Borowiec L., and S. Salata. 2012. Ants of Greece - Checklist, comments and new faunistic data (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Genus 23(4): 461-563.
 * Collingwood, C. A. 1993. A Comparitive Study of the Ant Fauna of Five Greek Islands. Biologia Gallo-hellenica. 20,1:191-197
 * Collingwood, C. A. "A comparative study of the ant fauna of five Greek islands." Biologia Gallo-Hellenica 20 (1993): 191-197.
 * Czechowski W., A. Radchenko, W. Czechowska and K. Vepsäläinen. 2012. The ants of Poland with reference to the myrmecofauna of Europe. Fauna Poloniae 4. Warsaw: Natura Optima Dux Foundation, 1-496 pp
 * Emery C. 1914. Wissenschaftliche Ergebnisse der Bearbeitung von O. Leonhard's Sammlungen. 5. Südeuropäische Ameisen (Hym.). Entomologische Mitteilungen. Berlin-Dahlem 3: 156-159.
 * Emery, C. "Beiträge zur Kenntniss der palaearktischen Ameisen." Öfversigt af Finska Vetenskaps-Societetens Förhandlingar (Helsinki) 20 (1898): 124-151.
 * Finzi, B. "Terzo contributo alla conoscenza della fauna mirmecologica della Venezia Giulia." Bollettino della Società Entomologica Italiana 59 (1927): 7-10.
 * Forel, A. "Fourmis de la faune méditerranéenne récoltées par MM. U. et J. Sahlberg." Revue Suisse de Zoologie 21 (1913): 427-438.
 * Legakis Collection Database
 * Petrov I. Z., and C. A. Collingwood. 1992. Survey of the myrmecofauna (Formicidae, Hymenoptera) of Yugoslavia. Archives of Biological Sciences (Belgrade) 44: 79-91.