Polyergus lucidus

Found from northeastern to midwestern North America, this species exclusively raids nests of Formica incerta.

Identification
Trager (2013): Polyergus lucidus is most likely to be confused with the broadly sympatric Polyergus montivagus, from which it can be distinguished by shorter scapes, greater abundance of vertex and pronotal pilosity, and conspicuously greater shininess. Though I have not seen types, I follow Smith (1947) in the characterization of this species. Smith redescribed the species based on a worker at PMNH, with the same data and collector (Norton) as those described by Mayr.

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists
Nearctic Region: Canada, United States.

Trager (2013): Polyergus lucidus is widely distributed from southern New England to Wisconsin, south to the mountain meadows and balds of the Carolinas and the tallgrass prairies of Missouri, matching most of the distribution of its unique host, Formica incerta (but not seen from Nebraska and Kansas).



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Biology
This slave-making host species enslaves Formica incerta.

Trager (2013): This species has been studied on Long Island, NY by Topoff and his students. Kwait and Topoff (1983, 1984) published on its raid organization and emigrations, reporting behavioral patterns familiar throughout the genus. At the same study site, Goodloe and Sanwald (1985) later studied host specificity in what I here report to be lucidus and sanwaldi with their distinct hosts, Formica incerta and Formica dolosa (reported as nitidiventris and schaufussi), respectively. These authors made the important finding that gynes arising from colonies with one of these hosts were not successfully adopted by the other host species, an early hint to me of their heterospecificity.

Fungi
This species is a host for the ectoparastic fungus Laboulbenia formicarum (Espadaler & Santamaria, 2012).

Nomenclature

 *  lucidus. Polyergus lucidus Mayr, 1870b: 952 (w.q.m.) U.S.A. Wheeler, G.C. & Wheeler, J. 1968: 214 (l.); Wheeler, W.M. 1903f: 659 (gynandromorph). Subspecies of rufescens: Forel, 1886f: 200; Emery, 1893i: 666. Revived status as species: Dalla Torre, 1893: 214; Wheeler, W.M. 1917i: 465; Smith, M.R. 1947g: 152; Creighton, 1950a: 557. See also: Talbot, 1968: 299; Trager, 2013: 524.

Worker
Trager (2013) - (N=38) HL 1.40–1.76 (1.59), HW 1.38–1.76 (1.53), SL 1.19–1.36 (1.27), ½ VeM 5–12 (7.25), ½ PnM 0–6 (2.67), WL 2.32–2.86 (2.49), GL 2.00–2.68 (2.32), HFL 1.72–2.04 (1.89), CI 93–100 (96), SI 75–91 (84), HFI 114–131 (123), FSI 140–158 (148), LI 3.72–4.62 (4.08), TL 5.72–7.12 (6.40).

Head subrectangular to narrowly subtrapezoidal, HL greater than HW, and often widest about half way from eye to vertex (narrowing closer to eye in other lucidus group species); with conspicuous vertex pilosity of 10–16 macrosetae (rarely up to 24); scapes not reaching vertex corners by 1–2X maximum widths of scape, scape notably clavate in the apical third; pronotum with 1–8 (12) erect setae; mesonotal profile weakly convex; propodeal profile evenly rounded; petiole with convex sides; petiolar dorsum convex; first tergite lacking pubescence; first tergite pilosity sparse, straight, shorter than the distance separating the setae.

Head somewhat to very shiny; mesonotum shiny; gaster shiny.

Color red, often with infuscation of portions of legs and gastral tip.

Etymology
Trager (2013) - Latin “lucidus” means shining, an appropriate name for Mayr’s species, the shiniest of all Polyergus.