Formica pisarskii

The main habitat of F. pisarskii is open and rather dry steppe, but it may also occur in fresh meadows and light woodland. Nests are typically mounds of finely cut grass particles but in the stony mountain steppe of Mongolia they are predominately under stones – as a rule without adherent piles of grass particles. A most probable host species for socially parasitic colony foundation is which was observed in any site where F. pisarskii was found. Alates were seen in the nests 1 August 2001 in NE Tibet and 8 August 2003 in Mongolia. (Seifert & Schultz, 2021)

Identification
Seifert (2000) - F. pisarskii is a species with a unique character combination. There is no other species in the genus with workers combining strongly developed clypeal and pronotal setae with reduced eye hairs and extremely large frontal and gastral pubescence distance. The queens can only be confused with those of Formica suecica and Formica forsslundi but pisarskii differs from the first by the extremely large PDF and PDG and the elongated head and from the latter by the presence of posterior clypeal setae and the large SL/CW (0.934, in forsslundi 0.770-0.888).

Distribution
Seifert (2000) - The known distribution is limited to Mongolia. Dlussky (1965) mentioned two records from in Central Siberia (Chitinskaya oblast’) and East Siberia (Yakutsk) of which I did not see voucher specimens.

The Reinig Line faunal divide separates East Siberian, Inner Mongolian, Chinese and Tibetan species from those of Central Siberia, West Siberia and the Turanian region (DE LATTIN, 1967). In ants, the Reinig Line is crossed only by a cold resistant species including Camponotus herculeanus, Formica exsecta, Formica gagatoides, Formica lugubris, Formica manchu, Formica picea, Formica pisarskii, Formica uralensis, Lasius flavus, Leptothorax acervorum and Tetramorium sibiricum (DLUSSKY, 1967; FRANCOEUR, 1983; SEIFERT, 2000, 2021a, 2021b).

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists
Palaearctic Region: Mongolia.

Habitat
Southern slopes of hill tops with sparse grassy vegetation.

Nomenclature

 *  pisarskii. Formica (Coptoformica) pisarskii Dlussky, 1964: 1034, figs. (w.q.) MONGOLIA. See also: Kupyanskaya, 1990: 204; Seifert, 2000a: 551.

Worker
Seifert (2000) - Medium-sized (CL 1322 ± 54, 1200-1384). Head elongated (CL/CW 1.069 ± 0.020, 1.039-1.109). Rather long scape (SL/CL 1.009 ± 0.020, 0.971-1.043). Whole clypeus from anterior to caudal parts with scattered setae (ClySet 4.47 ± 0.52, 4-5). Clypeus lateral of the tentorial pit level without or very few pubescence hairs surpassing the anterior margin by > 10 μm. Lateral semierect setae in the ocellar triangle usually present (OceSet 93%). Eye hairs short or absent (EyeHL 7.2 ± 5.5, 0-19). Pubescence in the occellar triangle very dilute (sqrtPDF 7.11 ± 0.45, 6.47-7.84). Craniad profile of forecoxae with few semierect setae (nCOXA 3.74 ± 1.08, 2-6). Dorsal pronotum always with few standing setae (nPN 7.23 ± 3.30, 4-16). Dorsal crest of petiole with few setae. Lateral metapleuron and ventrolateral propodeum only occasionally with single setae (nMET 0.03 ± 0.12, 0-0.5). Outer edge of the hind tibial flexor side conspicuously hairy (nHTFL 8.06 ± 0.93, 7.0-10.5). Semierect setae on gaster tergites always beginning on the first tergite (TERG 1.0 ± 0.0) and distributed over its whole surface. Pubescence distance on first gaster tergite very large (sqrtPDG 7.76 ±0.43, 7.04-8.84).

Queen
Seifert (2000) - (One paratype queen). Very small (CL 1270, CW 1221, ML 2099). Head long (CL/CW 1.040), scape rather long (SL/CL 0.898). Clypeus from anterior to posterior portions with scattered standing setae (ClySet 4). Clypeus lateral of the tentorial pit level without pubescence hairs surpassing the anterior margin by > 10 μm. Lateral semierect setae in the ocellar triangle present. Eye hairs very short and sparse (EyeHL 7). Pubescence in the occellar triangle extremely dilute (sqrtPDF 7.84). Occipital corners of head with appressed pubescence (OccHD 0.0). Dorsal head brilliantly shining (GLANZ 3.0); whole body very dark and shining, almost without microsculpture. Craniad profile of forecoxae with few setae (nCOXA 2.0). Promesonotum with many standing setae (nPN 14, MnHL 99). Outer edge of the hind tibial flexor side conspicuously hairy (nHTFL 9.0). Semi-erect setae on gaster tergites beginning on the first tergite (TERG 1.00) and not restricted to its caudal margin. Pubescence distance on first gaster tergite extremely large (sqrtPDG 8.11).

Type Material
Songino (24 km SW of Ulan Bator), Mongolia. Syntypes 1 queen, 10 workers  (MZ No. 3297-3299) [investigated].

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

 * Chesnokova S. V., and L. V. Omelchenko. 2011. Ants of Central Altai: Spatial-Typological Structure and Classification of Communities. Entomological Review 91(2): 253263.
 * Kupianskaia A.N. 1990. Murav'I (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) Dal'nego Vostoka SSSR (1989). Vladivostok. 258 pages.
 * Pfeiffer M., R. Schultz, A. Radchenko, S. Yamane, M. Woyciechowski, U. Aibek, and B. Seifert. 2007. A critical checklist of the ants of Mongolia (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Bonner Zoologische Beiträge 55: 1-8.
 * Pisarski B. 1969. Fourmis (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) de la Mongolie. Fragmenta Faunistica (Warsaw). 15: 221-236.
 * Shilenkov V. G., A. A. Pankratov, and E. V. Sofronova. 2012. Preliminirary notes on species composition of Magdansky Reserve. Baikal Zoological Journal 3: 30-34.
 * Siberian Zoological Museum. Website available at http://szmn.sbras.ru/old/Hymenop/Formicid.htm. Accessed on January 27th 2014.
 * Zhigulskaya Z. A. 2009. The ants of the Chuya Depression and the Yustyd river basin in Southeastern Altai. Contemporary Problems of Ecology 2009 2(3): 210-215.