Strumigenys memorialis

The type material was collected from a ground nest found in an open, grassy area with scattered pines. The colony contained a queen and 53 workers, with the nest consisting of a small chamber a few cm below the surface in clay soil, near the base of a large pine.

Identification
Bolton (2000) - A member of the Strumigenys pulchella-group. The pilosity of memorialis is distinctive in the pulchella-complex, especially its complete lack of elongate fine hairs and presence of quite dense short erect simple hairs on head and pronotum. Its possession of suberect short simple hairs on the tibiae is also unique as in other species these areas have short spatulate hairs that are decumbent to appressed.

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

Nomenclature

 *  memorialis. Smithistruma memorialis Deyrup, 1998: 81, fig. 1 (w.q.) U.S.A. Combination in Pyramica: Bolton, 1999: 1673; in Strumigenys: Baroni Urbani & De Andrade, 2007: 123. See also: Bolton, 2000: 120.

Worker
Bolton (2000) - TL 1.9, HL 0.56, HW 0.40, CI 71, ML 0.08, MI 14, SL 0.28-0.29, SI 70-73, PW 0.24-0.25, AL 0.50-0.52 (2 measured). Hairs that fringe the lateral clypeal margins anteriorly curved, spatulate to spoon-shaped. Anterior clypeal margin broadly convex; above the mandible with a pair of hairs that curve away from the midline. Dorsum of clypeus with a few very small inconspicuous spatulate hairs near periphery but otherwise hairless. Apicoscrobal hair absent. Cephalic dorsum from highest point of vertex to occipital margin with numerous short erect straight simple hairs that are blunt apically; without any fine elongate filiform or flagellate hairs. Pronotal dorsum with numerous short erect hairs; flagellate hairs absent from pronotal humeri and dorsa of pronotum and mesonotum, absent from dorsal (outer) surface of hind tibia and basitarsus; short suberect hairs present on tibiae. Hairs on first gastral tergite short and erect.

Type Material
Bolton (2000) - Holotype worker, paratype workers and queen, U.S.A.: Kentucky, Laurel Co., Daniel Boone National Forest, Bald Rock picnic area, 23.iii.1997 (S. & M. Deyrup) (,, , , Florida State Collection Gainesville, Archbold Biological Station Florida, and in private collections of L. Davis, M. DuBois and W. MacKay) [examined].

Etymology
The specific epithet, translated "of remembrance." dedicates this species to Bill Brown in place of the more usual patronym. For some years Bill Brown had held an anlipathy toward patronyms. His main objection. as far as I can lell, was that patronyms often honor people who have only the most trivial association with the species bearing their name, and in the worst cases could be ass igned to stoke the egos of sponsors or patrons. I do not think these objections would apply in the case of an honoree who had made great and lasting contributions to our knowledge of a genus, especially when the name is applied posthumously. Nevertheless, I am respecting his feelings by avoiding a direct patronym.

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

 * Bolton, B. 2000. The Ant Tribe Dacetini. Memoirs of the American Entomological Institute 65
 * Coovert, G.A. 2005. The Ants of Ohio (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) Ohio Biological Survey Bulletin New Series Volume 15(2):1-196
 * Deyrup M. 1998. Smithistruma memorialis (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), a new species of ant from the Kentucky Cumberland Plateau. Entomological News 109: 81-87.
 * Ivanov K., L. Hightower, S. T. Dash, and J. B. Keiper. 2019. 150 years in the making: first comprehensive list of the ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) of Virginia, USA. Zootaxa 4554 (2): 532–560.