Pheidole sigillata ^HNS new species

Types Mus. Comp. Zool. Harvard.

etymology L sigillata ^HNS, adorned with little figures or marks, referring to variable sculpturing among different parts of body.

diagnosis Similar in various traits to aper ^HNS, bambusarum ^HNS, brevicona ^HNS, dyctiota ^HNS, laeviventris ^HNS, lutzi ^HNS, risii ^HNS, rugatula ^HNS, senilis ^HNS, trachyderma ^HNS, and traini ^HNS, differing as follows.

Major: vertex and sides of dorsal surface of head rugoreticulate; occipital lobes foveolate and opaque; frontal lobes carinulate; pronotal dorsum rugoreticulate; sides of pronotum rugulose; metanotum sparsely rugulose; propodeal spines equilaterally triangular. Minor: occiput slightly constricted, but lacking nuchal collar; occiput, sides of head, and mid-clypeus in full-face view rugoreticulate; promesonotal dorsum rugoreticulate; propodeal spines equilaterally triangular. Measurements (mm) Holotype major: HW 1.34, HL 1.38, SL 0.56, EL 0.12, PW 0.64. Paratype minor: HW 0.54, HL 0.56, SL 0.54, EL 0.10, PW 0.38. Color Major: concolorous light brown.

Minor: body yellowish brown except for anterior fourth of head capsule, which is a lighter shade of brownish yellow; appendages brownish yellow.

Range Known from the type locality.

Biology The type colony was found in lowland rainforest.

figure Upper: holotype, major. Lower: paratype, minor. Caraguatatuba Reserva Florestal, Sao Paulo, 40-80 m (William L. Brown). Scale bars = 1 mm.