Messor minor

A west-Mediterranean taxon, whose variability and taxonomy of which are still poorly known. In Italy it is common especially along the Tyrrhenian Sea (Rigato & Toni, 2011).

Identification
Collingwood and Agosti (1996) - HW 1.8-2.4; EL/HW 0.18-0.22. This red-headed species occurs in South Italy and Tunisia and seems to be indistinguishable from Messor minor maurus from Tenerife and Lanzarote. It is known in Arabia only from a restricted area of the Asir highlands.

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists
Afrotropical Region: Saudi Arabia. Oriental Region: India. Palaearctic Region: Canary Islands, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Italy, Kuwait, Montenegro, Morocco.

It occurs in North Africa (Abdul-Rassoul et al. 2013).

Nomenclature

 * . Aphaenogaster barbara var. minor André, 1883b: 355 (w.q.) ITALY (mainland, Sardinia, Sicily), FRANCE (Corsica).
 * Emery, 1908e: 451 (m.).
 * Combination in Messor: Emery, 1908e: 451.
 * As unavailable (infrasubspecific) name: Emery, 1891b: 12; Emery, 1893c: 84; Forel, 1905b: 176; Santschi, 1908: 517; Forel, 1909e: 379; Emery, 1922c: 94.
 * Subspecies of capitatus: Dalla Torre, 1893: 101.
 * Subspecies of barbarus: Emery, 1887b: 457; Forel, 1890a: lxx; Emery, 1908e: 451; Forel, 1910a: 9; Karavaiev, 1912a: 9; Krausse, 1912b: 164; Emery, 1912f: 97; Santschi, 1914d: 335; Emery, 1916b: 143; Stitz, 1917: 343; Santschi, 1921d: 69; Emery, 1921f: 71; Finzi, 1924a: 13; Chapman & Capco, 1951: 137.
 * Subspecies of instabilis: Santschi, 1923f: 325 (in text); Wheeler, W.M. 1927g: 103; Bernard, 1948: 138.
 * Status as species: Bondroit, 1918: 155; Santschi, 1927c: 232; Kutter, 1927: 99; Finzi, 1929: 84; Santschi, 1934d: 273; Grandi, 1935: 100; Finzi, 1936: 159; Finzi, 1940: 158; Baroni Urbani, 1964c: 151; Cagniant, 1964: 87; Bernard, 1967: 149 (redescription); Baroni Urbani, 1971c: 61; Bernard, 1971: 7; Arnol'di, 1977b: 1640; Bernard, 1980: 266; Collingwood, 1985: 251; Agosti & Collingwood, 1987b: 271 (in key); Casevitz-Weulersse, 1990b: 156 (in key); Bolton, 1995b: 255; Poldi, et al. 1995: 3; Collingwood & Agosti, 1996: 319; Cagniant & Espadaler, 1998: 424; Cagnaint, 2006a: 197; Petrov, 2006: 92 (in key); Paknia, et al. 2008: 152; Casevitz-Weulersse & Galkowski, 2009: 489; Lush, 2009: 116; Vonshak, et al. 2009: 42; Karaman, M.G. 2011b: 37; Borowiec, L. 2014: 109 (see note in bibliography); Bharti, Guénard, et al. 2016: 38; Lebas, et al. 2016: 296; Barech, et al. 2020: 16.
 * Senior synonym of pompeianus: Baroni Urbani, 1971c: 61; Bolton, 1995b: 255.
 * Current subspecies: nominal plus calabricus, capreensis, hesperius, maurus Barquin Diez (unresolved junior homonym).
 * pompeianus. Messor minor var. pompeianus Santschi, 1927c: 233 (w.) ITALY.
 * [Misspelled as pompejana by Grandi, 1935: 100, and others.]
 * Finzi, 1929: 86 (q.).
 * Subspecies of minor: Finzi, 1929: 86; Santschi, 1934d: 273; Grandi, 1935: 100.
 * Junior synonym of minor: Baroni Urbani, 1971c: 61; Bolton, 1995b: 256.

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

 * Andoni V. 1977. Kontribut mbi Himenopteret e familjes Formicidae te vendit tone. Buletini I Shkencave te Natyres 31(2): 93-101.
 * AntArea. Accessed on February 5th 2014 at http://antarea.fr/fourmi/
 * Antarea (Personal Communication - Rumsais Blatrix- 27 April 2018)
 * Antarea (at www.antarea.fr on June 11th 2017)
 * Baroni Urbani, C.. "Formiche dell'Italia appenninica (Studi sulla mirmecofauna d'Italia, III)." Memorie del Museo Civico di Storia Naturale di Verona 12 (1964): 149-172.
 * 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.
 * Bernard, F.. "Messor carthaginensis n. sp., de Tunis, et révision des Messor du groupe barbara (Hym. Formicidae)." Bulletin de la Société Entomologique de France 84 (1980): 265-269.
 * Berquier C., C. Lebas, and M. C. Andrei-Ruiz. 2018. Etude du peuplement des Formicidae des arrieres-dunes littorales du site de Campo Dell'Oro (Ajaccio, Corse) et de la competition entre deux taxons a caractere envahissant: Linepithema humile (Mayr, 1868) et Tapinoma nigerrimum (Nylander, 1856). Revue d'Ecologie (Terre et Vie) &3(1): 12-22.
 * Berquier C., C. Lebas, and M. C. Andrei-Ruiz. 2018. Etude du peuplement des Formicidae des arrieres-dunes littorales du site de Campo Dell'Oro (Ajaccio, Corse) et de la competition entre deux taxons a caractere envahissant: Linepithema humile (Mayr, 1868) et Tapinoma nigerrimum (Nylander, 1856). Revue d’Ecologie (Terre et Vie) 73 (1): 12-22.
 * 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., C. Galkowski, and S. Salata. 2015. What is Tetramorium semilaeve André, 1883? (Hymenoptera, Formicidae). ZooKeys 512:39-62.
 * Cagniant, H and X. Espadaler, X. 1998 [1997]. Le genre Messor au Maroc (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Ann. Soc. Entomol. Fr. (n.s.) 33: 419-434
 * Cagniant, H. 2006. Liste actualisée des fourmis du Maroc. Myrmecologische Nachrichten 8: 193-200.
 * Cagniant, H., and X. Espadaler. "Le genre Messor au Maroc." Annales de la Société Entomologique de France (N.S.) 33 (4) (1998): 419-434.
 * Cagniant, H., and X. Espadaler. "Liste des espèces de fourmis du Maroc." Actes des Colloques Insectes Sociaux 8 (1993): 89-93.
 * Cagniant, H.. "Liste actualisee des fourmis du Maroc (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)." Myrmecologische Nachrichten 8 (2006): 193-200.
 * Cagniant, H.. "Étude de quelques fourmis marocaines. Statistique provisoire des Formicidae du Maroc." Bulletin de la Société d' Histoire naturelle de l' Afrique du Nord 53 (1964): 83-118.
 * Casevitz-Weulersse J. 1990. Etude Systematique de la Myrmecofaune Corse (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), deuxieme partie. Bull. Mus. Natn. Hist. Nat. Paris. 4eme serie 12, section A(2): 415-442.
 * Casevitz-Weulersse J. 1990. Étude systématique de la myrmécofaune corse (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) (Première partie). Bull. Mus. Natl. Hist. Nat. Sect. A Zool. Biol. Écol. Anim. (4) 12: 135-163.
 * Casevitz-Weulersse J. 1992. La myrmecofaune de la reserve naturelle de Scandola, inventaire spécifique (1984/85-1991). Trav. Sci. Parc nat. Res. Nat. Corse, Fr, 36: 85-108.
 * Casevitz-Weulersse J. 2014. A propos des fourmis de la Corse: Plagiolepis delaugerrei n. sp., parasite de Plagiolepis taurica Santschi, 1920 (Insecta: Hymenoptera: Formicidae: Formicinae). Le bulletin d’Arthropoda 47: 27-33.
 * Casevitz-Weulersse J., and C. Galkowski. 2009. Liste actualisee des Fourmis de France (Hymenoptera, Formicidae). Bull. Soc. Entomol. Fr. 114: 475-510.
 * Casevitz-Weulersse, J.. "Contribution a la connaisance des fourmis de la Corse (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)." These de Doctorat Museum Nat (1989): 379pp.
 * Castracani C., D. A. Grasso, A. Fanfani, and A. Mori. 2010. The ant fauna of Castelporziano Presidential Reserve (Rome, Italy) as a model for the analysis of ant community structure in relation to environmental variation in Mediterranean ecosystems. J Insect Conserv 14: 585594.
 * Chapman, J. W., and Capco, S. R. 1951. Check list of the ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) of Asia. Monogr. Inst. Sci. Technol. Manila 1: 1-327
 * Collingwood, C.A. and D. Agosti. 1996. Formicidae (Insects: Hymenoptera) of Saudi Arabia (Part 2) Fauna of Saudi Arabia, 15: 300-385.
 * Emery C. 1887. Catalogo delle formiche esistenti nelle collezioni del Museo Civico di Genova. Parte terza. Formiche della regione Indo-Malese e dell'Australia (continuazione e fine). [concl.]. Ann. Mus. Civ. Stor. Nat. 25(5): 427-473.
 * Emery C. 1916. Fauna entomologica italiana. I. Hymenoptera.-Formicidae. Bullettino della Società Entomologica Italiana 47: 79-275.
 * Emery, C.. "Beiträge zur Monographie der Formiciden des paläarktischen Faunengebietes. (Hym.) Teil III. Messor, Goniomma, Oxyopomyrmex." Deutsche Entomologische Zeitschrift 1908 (1908): 437-465.
 * Emery, C.. "Catalogo delle formiche esistenti nelle collezioni del Museo Civico di Genova. Parte terza. Formiche della regione Indo-Malese e dell'Australia (continuazione e fine)." Annali del Museo Civico di Storia Naturale Giacomo Doria (Genova) (2) 5, no. 25 (1887): 427-473.
 * Finzi B. 1929. Le forme italiane del genere Messor. Bollettino della Società Entomologica Italiana 61: 75-94.
 * Finzi, B.. "Formiche dell'isola d'Elba e Monte Argentario." Bollettino della Società Entomologica Italiana 56 (1924): 12-15.
 * Forel A. 1905. Miscellanea myrmécologiques II (1905). Ann. Soc. Entomol. Belg. 49: 155-185.
 * Forel A. 1909. Études myrmécologiques en 1909. Fourmis de Barbarie et de Ceylan. Nidification des Polyrhachis. Bull. Soc. Vaudoise Sci. Nat. 45: 369-407.
 * Forel A. 1910. Glanures myrmécologiques. Ann. Soc. Entomol. Belg. 54: 6-32.
 * Forel, A.. "Miscellanea myrmécologiques II (1905)." Annales de la Société Entomologique de Belgique 49 (1905): 155-185.
 * Grandi G. 1935. Contributi alla conoscenza degli Imenotteri Aculeati. XV. Boll. R. Ist. Entomol. Univ. Studi Bologna 8: 27-121.
 * IZIKO South Africa Museum Collection
 * Karavaiev V. 1912. Ameisen aus Tunesien und Algerien, nebst einigen unterwegs in Italien gesammelten Arten. Rus. Entomol. Obozr. 12: 1-22.
 * Krausse, A. H.. "Ueber sardische Ameisen." Archiv für Naturgeschichte, Berlin A 78(7) (1912): 162-166.
 * Lush M. J. 2009. Some ant records (Hymenoptera; Formicidae) from the Middle East. Zoology in the Middle East 47: 114-116.
 * Lush M.J. 2009. Some ant records (Hymenoptera; Formicidae) from the Middle East. Zoology in the Middle East 47: 114-116.
 * Poldi B., M. Mei, and F. Rigato. 1995. Hymenoptera, Formicidae. Vol 102. Checklist delle specie della fauna Italiana: 1-10.
 * Rigato S., and I. Toni. 2011. Short notes 21. Hymenoptera, Formicidae. Pp. 873-882 in: Nardi, G.; Whitmore, D.; Bardiani, M.; Birtele, D.; Mason, F.; Spada, L.; Cerretti, P. (eds.) 2011. Biodiversity of Marganai and Montimannu (Sardinia). Research in the framework of the ICP Forests network. Conservazione Habitat Invertebrati, 5. Sommacampagna, Verona: Cierre Edizioni, 896 pp.
 * Santschi, F. 1923. Messor et autres fourmis paléarctiques. Revue Suisse de Zoologie 30: 317-336
 * Santschi, F.. "Revision des Messor du groupe instabilis Sm. (Hymenopt.)." Boletín de la Real Sociedad española de Historia natural (Madrid) 27 (1927): 225-250.
 * Scupola A., and R. Poggi. 2014. Ricerche zoologiche della nave oceanografica "minerva" (C.N.R.) sulle isole circumsarde. XXXIII. Formiche. Estratto dagli Annali del Museo Civico di Storia Naturale “G. Doria” 106: 93-131.
 * Vicidomini S., and C. Pignataro. 2007. Contributo alla conoscenza della biodiversità del Parco Nazionale del Cilento e Vallo di Diano: gli Imenotteri veleniferi più comuni e check-list delle specie di Apoidea e Formicidae della provincia di Salerno. Il Naturalista Campano 34: 1-15.
 * Vonshak M., and A. Ionescu-Hirsch. 2009. A checklist of the ants of Israel (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Israel Journal of Entomology 39: 33-55.