Messor minor

A west-Mediterranean taxon, whose variability and taxonomy of which are still poorly known. In Italy it is common especially along the Tyrrhenian Sea (Rigato & Toni, 2011).

Identification
Collingwood and Agosti (1996) - HW 1.8-2.4; EL/HW 0.18-0.22. This red-headed species occurs in South Italy and Tunisia and seems to be indistinguishable from Messor minor maurus from Tenerife and Lanzarote. It is known in Arabia only from a restricted area of the Asir highlands.

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists
Afrotropical Region: Saudi Arabia. Oriental Region: India. Palaearctic Region: Canary Islands, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Italy, Kuwait, Montenegro, Morocco.

It occurs in North Africa (Abdul-Rassoul et al. 2013).

Nomenclature

 * . Aphaenogaster barbara var. minor André, 1883b: 355 (w.q.) ITALY (mainland, Sardinia, Sicily), FRANCE (Corsica).
 * Type-material: syntype workers, syntype queens (numbers not stated).
 * Type-localities: Italy (+ Sardinia, Sicily), France: Corsica (no further data).
 * Type-depository: MNHN.
 * Emery, 1908e: 451 (m.).
 * Combination in Messor: Emery, 1908e: 451.
 * As unavailable (infrasubspecific) name: Emery, 1891b: 12; Emery, 1893c: 84; Forel, 1905b: 176; Santschi, 1908: 517; Forel, 1909e: 379; Emery, 1922c: 94.
 * Subspecies of capitatus: Dalla Torre, 1893: 101.
 * Subspecies of barbarus: Emery, 1887b: 457; Forel, 1890a: lxx; Emery, 1908e: 451; Forel, 1910a: 9; Karavaiev, 1912a: 9; Krausse, 1912b: 164; Emery, 1912f: 97; Santschi, 1914d: 335; Emery, 1916b: 143; Stitz, 1917: 343; Santschi, 1921d: 69; Emery, 1921f: 71; Finzi, 1924a: 13; Chapman & Capco, 1951: 137.
 * Subspecies of instabilis: Santschi, 1923f: 325 (in text); Wheeler, W.M. 1927g: 103; Bernard, 1948: 138.
 * Status as species: Bondroit, 1918: 155; Santschi, 1927c: 232 (redescription); Kutter, 1927: 99; Finzi, 1929: 84; Santschi, 1934d: 273; Grandi, 1935: 100; Finzi, 1936: 159; Finzi, 1940: 158; Baroni Urbani, 1964c: 151; Cagniant, 1964: 87; Bernard, 1967: 149 (redescription); Baroni Urbani, 1971c: 61; Bernard, 1971: 7; Arnol'di, 1977b: 1640; Bernard, 1980: 266; Collingwood, 1985: 251; Agosti & Collingwood, 1987b: 271 (in key); Casevitz-Weulersse, 1990b: 156 (in key); Bolton, 1995b: 255; Poldi, et al. 1995: 3; Collingwood & Agosti, 1996: 319; Cagniant & Espadaler, 1998: 424; Cagniant, 2006a: 197; Petrov, 2006: 92 (in key); Paknia, et al. 2008: 152; Casevitz-Weulersse & Galkowski, 2009: 489; Lush, 2009: 116; Vonshak, et al. 2009: 42; Karaman, M.G. 2011b: 37; Borowiec, L. 2014: 109 (see note in bibliography); Bharti, Guénard, et al. 2016: 38; Lebas, et al. 2016: 296; Barech, et al. 2020: 16.
 * Senior synonym of pompeianus: Baroni Urbani, 1971c: 61; Bolton, 1995b: 255.
 * Distribution: Algeria, France (Corsica), India, Iran, Israel, Italy (+ Sardinia, Sicily), Kuwait, Montenegro, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia.
 * Current subspecies: nominal plus calabricus, capreensis, hesperius, maurus Barquin Diez (unresolved junior homonym).
 * pompeianus. Messor minor var. pompeianus Santschi, 1927c: 233 (w.) ITALY.
 * Type-material: syntype workers (number not stated).
 * Type-locality: Italy: Pompeii, 10.vii.1924 (F. Santschi).
 * Type-depository: NHMB.
 * [Misspelled as pompejana by Grandi, 1935: 100, and others.]
 * Finzi, 1929: 86 (q.).
 * Subspecies of minor: Finzi, 1929: 86; Santschi, 1934d: 273; Grandi, 1935: 100.
 * Junior synonym of minor: Baroni Urbani, 1971c: 61; Bolton, 1995b: 256.

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

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 * Antarea (Personal Communication - Rumsais Blatrix- 27 April 2018)
 * Antarea (at www.antarea.fr on June 11th 2017)
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