Pheidole albipes

At the type locality, in degraded lowland forest, I found two colonies nesting in small rotting tree branches in the ground leaf litter, and another colony under the bark of a large rotten log. (Wilson 2003)

Identification
See the description in the nomenclature section.

Distribution
Southern Mexico: known from several lowland forested localities in Veracruz, and from forest 7 km south of Valle Nacional, Oaxaca, at 450 m. (Wilson 2003)

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

Nomenclature

 *  albipes. Pheidole albipes Wilson, 2003: 367, figs. (s.w.) MEXICO.

Description
A small, strikingly colored species of the flavens group, similar in various traits to Pheidole alticola, Pheidole chalca, Pheidole ebenina, Pheidole euryscopa, Pheidole lustrata, Pheidole monteverdensis, Pheidole palenquensisand ''Pheidole servilia, differing as follows. Major: reddish brown with strongly contrasting pale yellow tibiae and tarsi, and head bicolorous; region between eye and occipital border irregularly rugoreticulate, occipital margins and center of clypeus smooth and shiny, and rest of dorsal surface of head carinulate; almost all of mesosoma smooth and shiny; humerus subangulate in dorsal-oblique view; postpetiole diamond-shaped from above.

Minor: almost all of head and body smooth and shiny; occiput broad and strongly concave; humerus subdenticulate in dorsal-oblique view.

MEASUREMENTS (mm) Holotype major: HW 0.60, HL 0.64, SL 0.38, EL 0.10, PW 0.34. Paratype minor: HW 0.38, HL 0.40, SL 0.36, EL 0.06, PW 0.24.

COLOR Major: body, coxae, and femora medium reddish brown; head anterior to eyes yellow; antennae, tibiae, and tarsi pale yellow.

Minor: head and body medium brown; coxae and femora light brown; antennae, tibiae, and tarsi very pale yellow, almost white.



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

Type Locality Information
MEXICO: Pueblo Nuevo, near Tetzonapa, Veracruz, col. E. O. Wilson.

Etymology
L albipes, white-footed.

Additional References
Text and images from this publication used by permission of the author.