Pheidole superba ^HNS new species

Types Mus. Comp. Zool. Harvard.

Etymology L superba ^HNS, splendid, superior, referring to the larger, strikingly dark, shiny body of major.

diagnosis Similar in various traits to amata ^HNS, ambigua ^HNS, celaena ^HNS, fera ^HNS, germaini ^HNS, peruviana ^HNS, rutilana ^HNS, schwarzmaieri ^HNS, and vomer ^HNS, differing as follows.

Major: large, dark reddish to blackish brown; eye small; humerus prominently raised in dorsal-oblique view as a large equilateral triangle; in side view, venter of head strongly convex and dorsum weakly so, with the head as a whole tapering conspicuously to the occiput; in full-face view, head subrectangular, with deep occipital cleft; posterior half of dorsal head surface smooth and shiny, anterior half carinulate, with no rugoreticulum; lower half of mesopleuron, humeri, and parts of mesonotum and propodeal dorsa carinulate, rest of mesosoma smooth and shiny; propodeal spines long and slender; postpetiole from above elliptical, with angulate margins.

Minor: yellow; occiput only slightly narrowed but with nuchal collar; apex of petiolar node strongly and broadly convex; spines short and directed backward; head and body mostly smooth and shiny.

Measurements (mm) Holotype major: HW 1.84, HL 2.16, SL 0.86, EL 0.20, PW 0.84.

Paratype minor: HW 0.62, HL 0.66, SL 0.74, EL 0.10, PW 0.40.

Color Major: head dark reddish brown, rest of body blackish brown, appendages medium reddish brown. Minor: dark yellow.

Range Known from the type locality, as well as from Barro Colorado Island, Panama.

Biology The Barro Colorado series was collected form a bat roost (Diana E. Wheeler).

Figure Upper: holotype, major. Lower: paratype, minor. COLOMBIA: Pueblito, on southern boundary of Tayrona Park, 250 m (Charles Kugler). Scale bars = 1 mm.