Camponotus cervicalis

Camponotus cervicalis is only known to occur in littoral forests and lower elevations of the rainforests in the east of Madagascar between the Ambanitaza forest in the north and the RNI Betampona in the south (Fig. 50D). Workers of the species have been found foraging on the ground and through leaf litter, but nest sites range from rotten logs, rotting tree stumps, rot pockets above the ground, live trees, under tree bark, and in moss and leaf litter. (Rakotonirina & Fisher, 2022)

Identification
With head in full-face view, lateral cephalic margin converging posteriorly towards eye level, covered with erect hairs from anterior to posterior of eye level; anteromedian margin of clypeus broadly convex; two apical teeth of mandible normally spaced.

Camponotus cervicalis and Camponotus niavo look similar, but in the latter, the level of the posterior ocular margin is located at posterior 1/4 of length of head and its antennal scape lacks appressed hairs. (Rakotonirina & Fisher, 2022)

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists
Malagasy Region: Madagascar.

Nomenclature

 * . Camponotus cervicalis Roger, 1863a: 134 (w.) MADAGASCAR.
 * Forel, 1891b: 19 (s.q.m.).
 * Combination in C. (Dinomyrmex): Forel, 1914a: 268;
 * combination in C. (Tanaemyrmex): Emery, 1925b: 84.
 * Status as species: Roger, 1863b: 2; Mayr, 1863: 458; Forel, 1891b: 19 (redescription); Dalla Torre, 1893: 224; Emery, 1896d: 370 (in list); Wheeler, W.M. 1922a: 1042; Emery, 1925b: 84; Bolton, 1995b: 91.
 * Status as species: Rakotonirina & Fisher, 2022: 71 (redescription).
 * Senior synonym of gaullei: Rakotonirina & Fisher, 2022: 71.
 * Senior synonym of gerberti: Rakotonirina & Fisher, 2022: 71.
 * Senior synonym of perroti: Rakotonirina & Fisher, 2022: 71.
 * Senior synonym of perroti aeschylus: Rakotonirina & Fisher, 2022: 71.
 * gaullei. Camponotus gaullei Santschi, 1911e: 128 (w.) MADAGASCAR.
 * Combination in C. (Dinomyrmex): Wheeler, W.M. 1922a: 1043;
 * combination in C. (Tanaemyrmex): Emery, 1925b: 84.
 * Status as species: Wheeler, W.M. 1922a: 1043.
 * Subspecies of cervicalis: Emery, 1925b: 84; Bolton, 1995b: 101.
 * Junior synonym of cervicalis: Rakotonirina & Fisher, 2022: 71.
 * gerberti. Camponotus (Tanaemyrmex) gerberti Donisthorpe, 1949e: 271 (s.w.) MADAGASCAR.
 * Status as species: Bolton, 1995b: 101.
 * Junior synonym of cervicalis: Rakotonirina & Fisher, 2022: 71.
 * perroti. Camponotus perroti Forel, 1897c: 202 (s.) MADAGASCAR.
 * [Camponotus perroti Wasmann, 1897: 250. Nomen nudum (attributed to Forel).]
 * Combination in C. (Dinomyrmex): Forel, 1913j: 224;
 * combination in C. (Myrmoturba): Forel, 1914a: 267;
 * combination in C. (Tanaemyrmex): Emery, 1925b: 89.
 * Status as species: Emery, 1898a: 225; Wheeler, W.M. 1922a: 1042; Emery, 1925b: 89; Bolton, 1995b: 117.
 * Current subspecies: nominal plus aeschylus.
 * Junior synonym of cervicalis: Rakotonirina & Fisher, 2022: 71.
 * aeschylus. Camponotus (Dinomyrmex) perroti var. aeschylus Forel, 1913j: 224 (q.) MADAGASCAR.
 * Combination in C. (Tanaemyrmex): Emery, 1925b: 89.
 * Subspecies of perroti: Wheeler, W.M. 1922a: 1042; Emery, 1925b: 89; Bolton, 1995b: 84.
 * Junior synonym of cervicalis: Rakotonirina & Fisher, 2022: 71.

Type Material
Camponotus cervicalis
 * Syntype workers, Madagascar (Humboldt) (NHMB); 1 syntype minor worker designated as lectotype, by present designation, AntWeb CASENT0101178 (NHMB) [Rakotonirina & Fisher, 2022].
 * Paralectotypes: 3 minor workers and 2 major workers of same data as lectotype but respectively specimen coded as: CASENT0101551, CASENT0101552 (MHNG), CASENT0104634 (ZMHB); CASENT0101704 and CASENT0101779 (MHNG) [Rakotonirina & Fisher, 2022].

Camponotus gaullei
 * Syntype workers, Madagascar, S. de la Baie d’Antongil, (NHMB); 1 syntype minor worker designated as lectotype, by present designation, AntWeb CASENT0101179 (NHMB) [Rakotonirina & Fisher, 2022].

Camponotus gerberti
 * Syntype workers, Madagascar, Sainte Marie (R. Géberti 1917) (NHMUK); 1 syntype minor worker designated as lectotype, by present designation, AntWeb CASENT0102310 (NHMUK) [Rakotonirina & Fisher, 2022].
 * Paralectotypes: 2 major workers of the same data as lectotype but with the following specimen codes: CASENT0102309, CASENT0102311 (NHMUK) [Rakotonirina & Fisher, 2022].

Camponotus perroti
 * Syntype workers, Madagascar, Sainte Marie (Perrot) (MHNG); 1 syntype minor worker designated as lectotype, by present designation, AntWeb CASENT0101350 (MHNG) [Rakotonirina & Fisher, 2022].
 * Paralectotype major worker of same data as lectotype but with specimen code CASENT0101351 (MHNG) [Rakotonirina & Fisher, 2022].

Camponotus perroti aeschylus
 * Holotype (by monotypy) alate queen, Madagascar (C. Keller) AntWeb CASENT0101561 (MHNG) [Rakotonirina & Fisher, 2022].

Taxonomic Notes
The following notes are provided by Rakotonirina & Fisher (2022):

In his original description of Camponotus gaullei, Santschi (1911a) discussed the resemblance of the species to C. cervicalis and C. dufouri and no strong separating characters were provided. However, with recent extensive sampling of the Malagasy ant fauna, the observation of the range of worker class sizes in these latter species indicates the closer similarity between C. cervicalis and C. gaullei. Combined with the close distance between the type localities of both species, this information would be enough to synonymize C. gaullei under C. cervicalis.

The description of C. perroti by Forel (1897) was based on a limited number of worker specimens which had a close similarity to C. cervicalis and C. dufouri. Careful examinations of more specimens obtained from the recent ant surveys in Madagascar show that C. perroti and C. cervicalis belong to the same species and that C. perroti merits its placement as a junior synonym of C. cervicalis.

Forel’s description of C. perroti aeschylus was based only on a single alate queen, and the comparison of this specimen with the queen specimens of C. cervicalis collected from its geographical range across Madagascar revealed that this type specimen was a queen of C. cervicalis.

Donisthorpe’s description of Camponotus gerberti did not compare the characters of the taxa to those of other species, although this description morphologically matches the type specimens of C. cervicalis. The data obtained from the recent ant survey in Madagascar and this information are sufficient to reasonably synonymize C. gerberti under C. cervicalis.

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

 * Emery C. 1886. Saggio di un catalogo sistematico dei generi Camponotus, Polyrhachis e affini. Memorie della Reale Accademia delle Scienze dell'Istituto di Bologna 5: 363-382
 * Fisher B. L. 1997. Biogeography and ecology of the ant fauna of Madagascar (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Journal of Natural History 31: 269-302.
 * Fisher B. L. 2003. Formicidae, ants. Pp. 811-819 in: Goodman, S. M.; Benstead, J. P. (eds.) 2003. The natural history of Madagascar. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, xxi + 1709 pp.
 * Forel A. 1897. Ameisen aus Nossi-Bé, Majunga, Juan de Nova (Madagaskar), den Aldabra-Inseln und Sansibar, gesammelt von Herrn Dr. A. Voeltzkow aus Berlin. Mit einem Anhang über die von Herrn Privatdocenten Dr. A. Brauer in Marburg auf den Seychellen und von Herrn Perrot auf Ste. Marie (Madagaskar) gesammelten Ameisen. Abhandlungen der Senckenbergischen Naturforschenden Gesellschaft 21: 185-208.
 * Wheeler W. M. 1922. Ants of the American Museum Congo expedition. A contribution to the myrmecology of Africa. IX. A synonymic list of the ants of the Malagasy region. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 45: 1005-1055