Wasmannia rochai

Longino & Fernández (2007) - Wasmannia rochai occurs widely in the mainland Neotropics. The syntype workers from Ceara are slightly larger than workers from Panama and Costa Rica, but with similar proportions. This species appears to be rare in Costa Rica, although its superficial similarity to Wasmannia auropunctata may result in its being overlooked in a sea of the latter species. Only two Costa Rican collections are known: Phil Ward collected workers and a dealate queen (PSW # 7628) in a recent treefall at Carara Biological Reserve. The senior author collected a lone dealate queen in a canopy tree at Sirena in Corcovado National Park. The species has been collected multiple times on Barro Colorado Island in Panama, where it is a relatively common part of the canopy ant fauna (Mike Kaspari pers. comm.).

Identification
Cuezzo et al. (2015) - The main characters to easily recognize workers of W. rochai, and separate this species from other of Wasmannia, are the presence of curved and clavate hairs on the dorsum of the mesosoma, short propodeal spines with a wide base, and a strong and well developed spine in the anteroventral part of the petiole.

Longino & Fernández (2007) - The differences between rochai and Wasmannia sigmoidea are subtle but consistent. Compared to sigmoidea, rochai is smaller, with a relatively shorter and broader head. The propodeal spines are shorter and are directed posteriorly, instead of upturned in sigmoidea. The setae on the face, mesosoma, and gaster are more curved, appearing shorter than the setae of sigmoidea because of the greater curvature. They are also more clavate, swelling noticeably at the tips. In some specimens of rochai the outer margin of the antennal scrobe is weakly defined, approaching the condition seen in Wasmannia affinis and Wasmannia lutzi. However, the face sculpture of rochai is always much more feeble than the coarse reticulate rugose sculpture on affinis and lutzi.

Distribution
Longino & Fernández (2007): Kempf (1972) recorded the range of rochai as Panama, the Guianas, Trinidad, and six Brazilian states from Ceara south to Sao Paulo. Given the prior uncertainty of species differences among affinis, lutzi , rochai, and sigmoidea, earlier determinations should be treated cautiously pending reexamination of existing material. We have examined material from Guatemala, Costa Rica, Venezuela, and Brazil (Amazonas, Bahia, Ceara, and Sao Paulo states).

Cuezzo et al. (2015) - This species has been recorded from Costa Rica to São Paulo State, Brazil (Longino & Fernández, 2007). We extend its distribution north to Mexico and south to the seccional Yacuí (25º41´S, 54º26´W, 243m) of the Parque Nacional Iguazú, Misiones, Argentina.

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists
Neotropical Region: Argentina, Brazil, Costa Rica, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guatemala, Guyana, Mexico, Panama, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, Venezuela.

Biology
Cuezzo et al. (2015) - In Argentina, this species co-occurred with Wasmannia longiseta in a secondary rainy subtropical forest belonging to the Paranaense phytogeographical province (Atlantic Forest ecoregion). This species is not as behavioral aggressive as Wasmannia auropunctata but is considered as a pest, particularly in the cocoa plantations of the southeast and southwest regions of Bahia State, Brazil (Souza et al., 2009).

Koch et al. (2018) sampled this species in Caryocar barsiliense trees, in southeastern Brazil cerrado, as part of a study examining species interactions in ant-plants.

Castes
Males have yet to be collected.

Nomenclature

 *  rochai. Wasmannia rochai Forel, 1912g: 1 (w.) BRAZIL. [Wasmannia rochai Forel, 1908e: 65. Nomen nudum.] See also: Longino & Fernández, 2007: 279.

Worker
Cuezzo et al. (2015) - (n=3) HL:0.45-0.50; HW:0.43-0.50; EL: 0.10- 0.11; SL:0.35-0.37; AD:0.22-0.25; PSL:0.07-0.10; WL: 0.45- 0.54; PD: 0.07-0.10; PTL: 0.10-0.12; PPTL:0.12; PTW:0.07; PPTW:0.12-0.15; CI: 0.96-0.99; OI:0.21-0.24. Lectotype worker measurements, 1w (from Longino & Fernández, 2007, not examined): WL: 0.54; HW: 0.50; HL: 0.50; EL: 0.11; CI: 0.99; OI: 0.22.

Color reddish-yellow to orange. Frons, between frontal carina, punctuate with irregular striae weakly marked, reaching the vertexal margin of the head. Occipital margin of the head with short, curved setae. Frontal carina with four long hairs arranged longitudinally along an imaginary line that runs along the anterior edges and curves. Antenna with 11 segments. Antennal scrobes shallow with sculpture similar to rest of head but without striae. Punctuate sculpture more defined laterally on head in full face view. Ventral margin of scrobe weakly developed. Disc of clypeus with several weakly developed striae anteriorly divergent. Masticatory margin of mandible with five teeth, no denticles and basal margin without teeth or denticles. Compound eye well developed, protruding from lateral margin of headin full face view. Malar space with 5-7 longitudinal irregular carinae. Vertexal margin straight with median notch. Promesonotum with four pairs of long, clavate, and curved setae (length approx. 0.1 mm). Humeral angle well developed with one long and curved hair. Mesosomal dorsum rugose with 6-8 longitudinal carinae strongly developed on anterior half of pronotum. Propodeum with one pair of curved setae shorter than those of promesonotum. Short propodeal spines, divergent in dorsal view. In lateral view, propodeal spines shorter than length of petiole and posteriorly directed, with wide base. Petiole triangular, with 1 pair of long, curved setae, similar in longitud to those of promesonotum, anterior margin well differentiated, joining rest of profile in a curve, profile without defined ridge or angle. Mesosoma, petiole, and postpetiole in lateral view, strongly spotted. Metapleural gland strongly developed, bulky. Propodeal lobe rounded and well developed. Petiolar peduncle shorter than petiole in lateral view. Long, acute spine ispresent on anterior ventral margin of peduncle. In dorsal view petiole with rounded anterior edge. In dorsal view postpetiole square and wider than long with four long and curved setae disposed in a middle line. Gaster feebly punctuate, with long curved setae, scattered along each segment.

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