Tetramorium Mayr, 1855

Mbanyana, Nokuthula, Garcia, Francisco Hita, Robertson, Hamish Gibson & Roux, Johannes Jacobus Le, 2018, A taxonomic revision of seed harvester ants of the Tetramorium solidum group (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in southern Africa, European Journal of Taxonomy 454, pp. 1-59 : 5-6

publication ID	https://doi.org/ 10.5852/ejt.2018.454
publication LSID	lsid:zoobank.org:pub:07F6B28D-ECA4-4F14-8132-0A58DE156057
DOI	https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3818712
persistent identifier	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/039887DC-FF94-A471-2B77-A7F9FDABA785
treatment provided by	Valdenar
scientific name	Tetramorium Mayr, 1855
status

Treatment

Genus Tetramorium Mayr, 1855 View in CoL

Diagnosis of T. solidum species-group workers

The following diagnosis, which is based on Bolton (1980), distinguishes the group from all other groups in the Afrotropical region: relatively large Tetramorium (HW 0.875 –1.279 mm, WL 0.915 –1.498 mm) with very well-developed, massively constructed heads (HW> 0.80 mm and in most cases exceeding 1.00 mm) equipped with strong mandibles; 12-segmented antennae; anterior clypeal margin with deep and wide median indentation, sometimes occupying half of the anterior clypeal margin, except for T. barbigerum Bolton, 1980 , in which it is more shallowly impressed; large eyes (OI 24–26); frontal carinae absent or very short, if present ending before anterior eye level; frontal scrobes absent; ventral face of head (usually) with J-shaped ammocheate hairs; base of first gastral tergite always sculptured, even if weakly so.

Overview of species of Tetramorium solidum group

The species of the Tetramorium solidum group can be distinguished from other groups of Tetramorium by the presence of a median notch or impression on the anterior clypeal margin, which is often broad and deeply indented, combined with the presence of ammocheate hairs on the ventral side of the head ( Bolton 1980). Bolton (1980, 1985) grouped species of the T. solidum group into three complexes based on the form of their pilosity. The first complex comprises T. dichroum Santschi, 1932 , T. peringueyi Arnold, 1926 and T. rothschildi ( Forel, 1907) . These three species are characterized by the presence of abundant hairs on the dorsal surfaces of the head and body; these hairs are branched in T. rothschildi and simple in the other two species. The second complex includes T. clunum Forel, 1913 , T. galoasanum Santschi, 1910 and T. setuliferum Emery, 1895 ; they all lack erect hairs on the dorsal surface of the antennae, mesosoma, petiole, postpetiole and first gastral tergite. They have a bizarre pilosity, which consists of short, broad, blunted, flattened and strongly appressed glittering silvery hairs. The third complex consists of T. barbigerum , T. glabratum Stitz, 1923 , T. grandinode Santschi, 1913 , T. jordani Santschi, 1937 , T. pogonion Bolton, 1980 , T. rufescens Stitz, 1923 , T. signatum Emery, 1895 and T. solidum Emery, 1886 , in which the body is hairless, or nearly so. Only T. solidum has a few hairs on the mesosoma ( Bolton 1980).