Cephalotes lenca

Cephalotes lenca has been collected in dry scrub habitat.

Identification
A member of the texanus clade, the apomorphy of which is the thick longitudinal rugosity on the posterior face of the femora, a character uniquely derived for Cephalotes lenca in this clade. Other characters useful to recognise lenca are the thick striae on the ventral part of the head and on the sides of the first gastral sternite and the angulate mid and hind femora. Similar to Cephalotes curvistriatus . The two, however, differ by the mesosomal striation, much thinner in lenca, by the shape of the cephalic hairs, broader in lenca, and by the postpetiolar spines, shorter in lenca. Lenca differs from the similar Cephalotes sobrius mainly by the presence of thick, longitudinal rugosities on the posterior face of the femora. (de Andrade and Baroni Urbani 1999)

Key to Cephalotes Workers

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists
Neotropical Region: Honduras, Nicaragua.

Nomenclature

 *  lenca. Cephalotes lenca De Andrade, in De Andrade & Baroni Urbani, 1999: 609, fig. 258 (w.) HONDURAS.

Worker
Head subquadrate. Vertexal angles round, with superficially crenulate borders. Vertexal margin gently concave. Cheeks marginate above and below. Frontal carinae with minute crenulations and upturned over the eyes. Mandibles laterally carinate.

Mesosoma convex in side view. Pronotum in dorsal view with the anterior border convex. Scapular angles absent. Humeral angles with three small pairs of teeth, the anterior pair pointed and directed laterally, the second pair similar in size to the first, and the third pair minute and variably pointed. Sides of mesonotum with a pair of teeth. Promesonotal and propodeal sutures superficially impressed. Propodeum with differentiate basal and declivous faces; basal face not strongly narrowing backwards, with three pairs of teeth, the second pair larger than the others, the third pair thinner, sometimes one additional pair of minute denticles are present between the second and third pairs of teeth; declivous face converging posteriorly.

Petiole anteriorly truncate; its anterior border bearing a pair of small denticles. Petiolar spines slightly shorter than the petiole, thin, pointed backwards and originating from the beginning of the petiolar sides. Postpetiole broader than petiole, with thin, pointed spines arising anterolaterally and gently curved backwards.

Gaster suboval, with an anterolateral crest not surpassmg the first gastral stigma backwards.

Mid and hind femora angulate; mid and hind basitarsi long and without flat and broad base.

Sculpture. Head dorsum superficially and minutely punctate, with anastomosing foveae forming longitudinal, irregular rugosities with their interspaces. Frontal carinae superficially punctate, with sparse, faint foveae and few, thin, longitudinal rugosities. Ventral face of the head and mesosoma superficially punctate and with thick longitudinal striae. Pedicel with the same sculpture as the mesosoma but more irregular.

First gastral tergite superficially and minutely reticulate, with irregular, longitudinal rugosities. First sternite with longitudinal striae on the sides and on the anterior half; its posterior half superficially punctate and shining.

Legs reticulate-punctate, with thick, longitudinal rugosities on the posterior face of the femora.

Pilosity. Body with five types of hairs: (1) appressed and thick originating from each fovea; many more, similar but not originating from foveae, dense on the mesosoma, on the pedicel, on the cheeks, on the mesopleurae, on the middle of the metapleurae, on the distal part of the extensor face of the femora and on the extensor face of tibiae, on the gaster but thinner; (2) slightly clubbed, on the sides of the frontal carinae, of the mesosoma, of the pedicel, on the anterolateral border of the first tergite, and on the legs; (3) truncate and subdecumbent, as long as the clubbed ones, mixed to type (1) hairs, on the pedicel and on the gaster; (4) minute and thin on the first gastral sternite; (5) long and slightly pointed on the posterior border of the gastral sternites.

Colour. Dark brown. Frontal carinae, tibiae, tarsomeres, mesosomal and peduncular spines yellowish-orange; basitarsi darker. First gastral tergite with a pair of yellow, oval spots anterolaterally. Anterolateral crest of the first gastral tergite yellowish-transparent.

Measurements (in mm) and indices: TL 3.70-4.16; HL 0.92-1.00; HW 1.04-1.16; EL 0.28-0.33; PW 0.90-1.04; PeW 0.57-0.63; PpW 0.74-0.75; HBaL 0.31-0.36; HBaW 0.08-0.09; CI 113.0-116.0; PI 111.5-115.5; PPeI 157.9-165.1; PPpI 121.6-138.7; HBaI 25.0-25.8.

Type Material
Worker intercepted by U. S. Plant Quarantine Inspectors at Hoboken, N. J., 19.V.1941, on Cattleya sp. from Honduras, n. 41-8337. Paratypes: 2 workers, same data as the holotype (USNM).

Etymology
This species is named after the Lenca, the Indians from Honduras.