Pheidole veletis

A colony found by Alfred Emerson on Barro Colorado Island, Panama, was nesting in a rotten log on the forest floor. (Wilson 2003)

Identification
See the description in the nomenclature section.

Distribution
Known from the type locality (Las Palmas, Bolivia), from Barro Colorado Island, Panama, and from Santarém, Pará, Brazil. (Wilson 2003)

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists
Neotropical Region: Bolivia, Brazil, Panama.

Nomenclature

 *  veletis. Pheidole veletis Wilson, 2003: 246, figs. (s.w.) BOLIVIA.

Description
Similar to Pheidole laevinota and Pheidole rufipilis and somewhat less to Pheidole laevifrons and Pheidole variegata (= Pheidole pubiventris), differing in the following combination of traits.

Major: yellow; antennal scape just reaching occipital border; humerus smoothly rounded in dorsal-oblique view; postpetiole subtrapezoidal from above; carinulae originating on frontal lobes extend halfway between level of eye and occiput; anterior fringe of pronotum and dorsal surface of propodeum transversely carinulate.

Minor: yellow; anterior fringe of pronotum transversely carinulate; propodeal spine reduced to denticle.

MEASUREMENTS (mm) Holotype major: HW 0.96, HL 0.94, SL 0.72, EL 0.14, PW 0.50. Paratype minor: HW 0.52, HL 0.58, SL 0.66, EL 0.12, PW 0.38.

COLOR Major and minor: concolorous medium yellow.



'''Figure. Upper: holotype, major. Lower: paratype, minor. Scale bars = 1 mm.'''

Type Material
BOLIVIA: vicinity of Las Palmas, Santa Cruz, col. James C. Trager.

Etymology
L veletis, skirmisher.

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

 * Fernández, F. and S. Sendoya. 2004. Lista de las hormigas neotropicales. Biota Colombiana Volume 5, Number 1.
 * Longino J. T. L., and M. G. Branstetter. 2018. The truncated bell: an enigmatic but pervasive elevational diversity pattern in Middle American ants. Ecography 41: 1-12.