Cephalotes pallens

Distribution
This taxon was described from Brazil. It is also found in Ecuador, Colombia, Venezuela, Suriname, French Guiana, Guyana, Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, Costa Rica, Trinidad and Tobago, Grenada.

Morphology
Wheeler and Holldobler (1985) investigated how Cepholates workers might collect or accumulate debri on their head disks. Such debri can be used as camouflage for individuals that are using their head to block the nest entrance, much like Basicerotini and Stegomyrmicini ant species affix dirt their bodies. They discovered Cephalotes pallens do in fact have encrusted material on their head disks. This varied from slight to extremely built-up material. Unexpectedly these covering materials appeared to be produced by the ants, rather than an accumulation of material that was affixed and somehow binded to the head disk. The presence of many pores, which are presumably attached to glands, are the likely source of secreted fibrous and filmy substances that were detected.

They also discovered: "Z. pallens (Figs. 4-6). To the eye, the head of the soldier shown in Fig. 4a appeared to be covered with a thin layer of dirt. Closer examination revealed that the surface was covered with irregular ribbons of material (Figs. 4b, 5a). Pores were visible along part of the central ridge (see Fig. 5b). Material seemed to be extruded in lumpy strands from a number of the pores (Figs. 5b, 6), supporting the suggestion that it is secretory in origin."

Nomenclature

 *  pallens. Cryptocerus pallens Klug, 1824: 206 (w.) BRAZIL. Emery, 1894c: 212 (s.q.); Emery, 1896h: 635 (m.); Wheeler, G.C. & Wheeler, J. 1973b: 79 (l.). Combination in Cryptocerus (Cyathocephalus): Emery, 1915i: 192; in Cryptocerus (Cyathomyrmex): Creighton, 1933: 100; in Zacryptocerus: Brandão, 1991: 387; in Cephalotes: De Andrade & Baroni Urbani, 1999: 493. Senior synonym of araneolus, discocephalus: Emery, 1894c: 212; Kempf, 1958a: 151.
 * araneolus. Cryptocerus araneolus Smith, F. 1853: 223, pl. 19, fig. 4 (w.) ANTILLES. Subspecies of discocephalus: Forel, 1893g: 382. Revived status as species: Forel, 1897b: 300. Subspecies of pallens: Forel, 1899c: 51. Junior synonym of pallens: Emery, 1894c: 212; Kempf, 1958a: 151.
 * discocephalus. Cryptocerus discocephalus Smith, F. 1853: 222, pl. 20, fig. 2 (w.) BRAZIL. Smith, F. 1858b: 191 (s.m.); Smith, F. 1876d: 608 (q.). Combination in Cryptocerus (Cyathocephalus): Emery, 1924d: 311. Subspecies of pallens: Forel, 1911e: 257. Junior synonym of pallens: Emery, 1894c: 212; Kempf, 1958a: 151.
 * marginata. Cryptocerus varians subsp. marginata Wheeler, W.M. & Mann, 1914: 39, fig. 17 (s.w.q.) HAITI. [Junior primary homonym of Cryptocerus marginatus Fabricius, 1804: 419 (above).] Junior synonym of pallens: Kempf, 1958a: 151. Replacement name: decoloratus De Andrade, in De Andrade & Baroni Urbani, 1999: 508.

Additional References

 * [[Media:Wheeler_&_Holldobler_1985.pdf|Wheeler, D. E.; Hölldobler, B. 1986 ("1985"). Cryptic phragmosis: the structural modifications. Psyche (Cambridge) 92:337-353. [1986-04-27] PDF]]