Pheidole astur

This large species occurs in lowland rainforest over a wide part of South America. At Cuzco Amazónico, near Puerto Maldonado, Peru, Stefan Cover (unpublished collection notes) reports colonies nesting in soil, and minors foraging on the surface of soil and leaf litter. (Wilson 2003)

Identification
See the description in the nomenclature section.

Distribution
I have examined material of astur from French Guiana, Suriname, and Colombia, as well as Amazonian Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia. (Wilson 2003)

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists
Neotropical Region: Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Peru, Suriname.

Worker
Minor

Nomenclature

 *  astur. Pheidole astur Wilson, 2003: 268, figs. (s.w.) PERU.

Description
A member of a complex of Pheidole species with giant majors covered by short, bristly hair, in the larger fallax group, comprising Pheidole astur, Pheidole oxyops, Pheidole praeusta and Pheidole trageri. P. astur is distinguished among them by the following combination of traits.

Major: a patch of rugoreticulum present laterad to each antennal fossa; longitudinal carinulae immediately next to the dorsal midline of head reaches the occipital border, but the occipital lobes are smooth and shiny; postpetiolar node seen from above elliptical in shape, with subangular lateral margins; small subpostpetiolar process present.

Minor: occiput narrowed to form a distinct neck, followed by a broad nuchal collar; pronotum entirely smooth and shiny.

MEASUREMENTS (mm) Holotype major: HW 2.34, HL 2.66, SL 1.20, EL 0.30, PW 1.10. Paratype minor: HW 0.68, HL 1.04, SL 1.42, EL 0.20, PW 0.50.

COLOR Major: body and mandibles reddish brown, legs and antennae a lighter shade of reddish brown.

Minor: concolorous yellow.



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

Type Material
PERU: Cuzco Amazónico, 15 km northeast of Puerto Maldonado, Madre de Dios, col. Stefan Cover and John E. Tobin.

Etymology
L astur, hawk.

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

 * Fernández, F. and S. Sendoya. 2004. Lista de las hormigas neotropicales. Biota Colombiana Volume 5, Number 1.
 * Fichaux M., B. Bechade, J. Donald, A. Weyna, J. H. C. Delabie, J. Murienne, C. Baraloto, and J. Orivel. 2019. Habitats shape taxonomic and functional composition of Neotropical ant assemblages. Oecologia 189(2): 501-513.
 * Franco W., N. Ladino, J. H. C. Delabie, A. Dejean, J. Orivel, M. Fichaux, S. Groc, M. Leponce, and R. M. Feitosa. 2019. First checklist of the ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) of French Guiana. Zootaxa 4674(5): 509-543.
 * Groc S., J. H. C. Delabie, F. Fernandez, M. Leponce, J. Orivel, R. Silvestre, Heraldo L. Vasconcelos, and A. Dejean. 2013. Leaf-litter ant communities (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in a pristine Guianese rainforest: stable functional structure versus high species turnover. Myrmecological News 19: 43-51.
 * Mertl A. L., J. F. A. Traniello, K. Ryder Wilkie, and R. Constantino. 2012. Associations of two ecologically significant social insect taxa in the litter of an amazonian rainforest: is there a relationship between ant and termite species richness? Psyche doi:10.1155/2012/312054
 * Ryder Wilkie K.T., A. L. Mertl, and J. F. A. Traniello. 2010. Species Diversity and Distribution Patterns of the Ants of Amazonian Ecuador. PLoS ONE 5(10): e13146.doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0013146