Mycetarotes parallelus

Leal et al. (2011) recorded biometric data on three nests of this species that were found in cerrado of São Paula state, Brazil. They found the ground nests had a mound, contained a single chamber and were at most 16 cm deep. The fungus garden consisted of laminar sponges suspended from the ceiling of the chamber or on plant roots. Worker number averaged 357 ±39 and there was one queen per colony.

Identification
Sanchez et al (2015) - Distinguished by the following characters: two pairs of spines on the mesonotum (where other members of the genus have three pairs), well developed petiolar spines, postpetiole without a tooth near each side of the lateral anterior margin, weakly marked outer frontal carinae branches, and a deep circular impression on the dorsal surface of the postpetiole (Mayhé-Nunes & Brandão 2006). A specimen from Colombia also has an opaque integument, reddish-brown head color, yellowish legs and mesosoma, dark gaster with erect hairs absent and sparse appressed hairs.

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists
Neotropical Region: Brazil, Colombia, Paraguay.

Biology
Sanchez et al (2015) - Mycetarotes parallelus is the most widespread and common of all species of the genus (Mayhé-Nunes & Jaffé, 1998), in contrast to the other species of the genus which are uncommon and whose distributions are restricted to specific conditions (Mayhé-Nunes, 1995; Mayhé-Nunes & Lanziotti, 2004). Unlike other Mycetarotes species M. parallelus commonly lives in open habitats, gallery forest, secondary forest, and disturbed habitats (Solomon et al., 2004). This trend is corroborated by our discovery of Mycetarotes workers in a mature oil palm plantation, located in the Colombian Llanos (a seminatural system dominated by grasslands interspersed with wet and dry forests) (Gilory et al., 2014).

Nomenclature

 *  parallelus. Cyphomyrmex parallelus Emery, 1906c: 161, fig. 23 (w.q.) BRAZIL. Kempf, 1960d: 280 (m.). Combination in C. (Mycetarotes): Emery, 1913b: 251; in Mycetarotes: Kempf, 1960d: 279. Senior synonym of luederwaldti: Kempf, 1960d: 279. See also: Mayhé-Nunes & Brandão, 2006: 468.
 * luederwaldti. Atta (Mycocepurus) luederwaldti Forel, 1911c: 293 (w.q.) BRAZIL. Combination in Cyphomyrmex (Mycetarotes): Emery, 1913b: 251; in Mycocepurus: Luederwaldt, 1918: 39. Junior synonym of parallelus: Kempf, 1960d: 279.

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

 * Emery C. 1906. Studi sulle formiche della fauna neotropica. XXVI. Bullettino della Società Entomologica Italiana 37: 107-194.
 * Fernandes T. T., R. R. Silva, D. Rodrigues de Souza-Campana, O. Guilherme Morais da Silva, and M. Santina de Castro Morini. 2019. Winged ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) presence in twigs on the leaf litter of Atlantic Forest. Biota Neotropica 19(3): http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/1676-0611-bn-2018-0694
 * Forel A. 1911. Ameisen des Herrn Prof. v. Ihering aus Brasilien (Sao Paulo usw.) nebst einigen anderen aus Südamerika und Afrika (Hym.). Deutsche Entomologische Zeitschrift 1911: 285-312.
 * Kempf W. W. 1960. A review of the ant genus Mycetarotes Emery (Hymenoptera, Formicidae). Revista Brasileira de Biologia 20: 277-283.
 * Kempf, W.W. 1972. Catalago abreviado das formigas da regiao Neotropical (Hym. Formicidae) Studia Entomologica 15(1-4).
 * Klingenberg, C. and C.R.F. Brandao. 2005. The type specimens of fungus growing ants, Attini (Hymenoptera, Formicidae, Myrmicinae) deposited in the Museu de Zoologia da Universidade de Sao Paulo, Brazil. Papeis Avulsos de Zoologia 45(4):41-50
 * Leal, I.R. and P.S. Oliveira. 2000. Foraging ecology of attine ants in a Neotropical savanna: seasonal use of fungal substrate in the cerrado vegetation of Brazil. Insectes Sociaux 47:376-382
 * Luederwaldt H. 1918. Notas myrmecologicas. Rev. Mus. Paul. 10: 29-64.
 * Mayhe-Nunes A. J., and K. Jaffe. 1998. On the biogeography of attini (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Ecotropicos 11(1): 45-54.
 * Mayhé-Nunes, A.J. and C.R.F. Brandão. 2006. Revisionary notes on the fungus-growing ant genus Mycetarotes Emery (Hymenoptera, Formicidae). Revista Brasileira de Entomologia 50(4): 463-472.
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 * Santoandre S., J. Filloy, G. A. Zurita, and M. I. Bellocq. 2019. Ant taxonomic and functional diversity show differential response to plantation age in two contrasting biomes. Forest Ecology and Management 437: 304-313.
 * Solomon, S.E., U.G. Mueller, T.R. Schultz, C.R. Currie, S.L. Price, A.C. Oliveira da Silva-Pinhati, M. Bacci and H. L. Vasconcelos. 2004. Nesting biology of the fungus growing ants Mycetarotes Emery (Attini, Formicidae). Insectes Sociaux 51(4):333-338.
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 * Vasconcelos H. L., B. B. Araujo, A. J. Mayhé-Nunes. 2008. Patterns of diversity and abundance of fungus-growing ants (Formicidae: Attini) in areas of the Brazilian Cerrado. Revista Brasileira de Zoologia 25(3): 445-450.
 * de Souza D. R., S. G. dos Santos, C. de B. Munhae, and M. S. de C. Morini. 2012. Diversity of Epigeal Ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in Urban Areas of Alto Tietê. Sociobiology 59(3): 703-117.