Pheidole nubicola

This species occurs in transitional tropical-temperate cloud forest. One colony collected at Rancho Cielo by P. S. Ward was in a rotten log. Another I found on Mt. Orizaba was under a large rock in hardwood forest dominated by Liquidambar and Carpinus, with a Cyathea-melastome understory. Winged queens were present in a nest at Rancho Cielo on 23 July. (Wilson 2003)

Identification
See the description in the nomenclature section.

Distribution
From Wilson (2003): Known from the type locality, and from the La Perla-Rancho Somecla road on Mt. Orizaba, Veracruz, 1800–2000 m (E. O. Wilson).

This taxon was described from Mexico.

Description
A member of the fallax group similar to Pheidole cielana of Mexico and Pheidole inca of Peru, distinguished as follows.

Major: frontal lobes, sides of head, most of vertex, and pronotal dorsum rugoreticulate; median ocellus present; antennal scape attains occipital border; head bicolored (see Color below).

Minor: all of head, mesosoma, and waist foveolate and opaque; pronotal dorsum rugoreticulate; midclypeus with scattered short rugulae; occiput strongly constricted but lacks nuchal collar.

MEASUREMENTS (mm) Holotype major: HW 1.18, HL 1.20, SL 0.96, EL 0.20, PW 0.62. Paratype minor: HW 0.64, HL 0.74, SL 0.94, EL 0.16, PW 0.42.

COLOR Major: body medium brown; head bicolored, with anterior fourth dark yellow (except for clypeus and frontal triangle, which are medium brown); appendages dark yellow.



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

Type Locality Information
MEXICO: Rancho del Cielo, Sierra de Guatemala, Tamaulipas, 1070 m (Cornell University Expedition group, 1965).

Etymology
L nubicola, cloud-dweller, referring to the mountain habitat of the type colony.