Adelomyrmex longinoi Fernández, 2003

Longino, John T., 2012, A review of the ant genus Adelomyrmex Emery 1897 (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) in Central America, Zootaxa 3456, pp. 1-35 : 19-20

Adelomyrmex longinoi Fernández, 2003

( Figs 3 , 22 )

Adelomyrmex longinoi Fernández, 2003: 21 . Holotype worker: Costa Rica, Heredia: Est. Biol. La Selva, 10°26’N 84°01’W, 50–150 m, 18 Jun 1999, ex sifted leaf litter (Project LLAMA W/10/005) [specimen code INBIOCRI002720661] [unknown] (examined). The queen is described but not listed among paratype material.

Geographic range. Guatemala to Costa Rica.

Biology. This species occurs in mature wet forest leaf litter. It is most abundant in the lowlands but can occur as high as 1100 m elevation (Parque Nacional Azul Meambar, Honduras). The northern limit appears to be just across the Motagua fault in southeastern Guatemala. It is widespread in wet forests of Honduras and Nicaragua. In Costa Rica it occurs on both lowland Atlantic and southern Pacific slopes, but only to 500 m elevation. When present it is always a low-density element of the fauna, occurring in 1–10% of miniWinkler samples, and usually as one or two individuals per sample.

Comments. In the northern part of its range A. longinoi is sympatric with the closely similar A. marginodus , and the two species may occur together in the same Winkler samples. The anterior and dorsal faces of the pronotum are less sharply differentiated in A. longinoi , and the posterior margin of the postpetiole lacks a pronounced transverse rim. DNA barcoding evidence supports the distinctness of the two species. Fernández (2003) commented on Chiapas specimens tentatively identified as A. longinoi ; these are almost certainly A. marginodus .

The holotype of A. longinoi is currently missing. Queries have not located it at BMNH, IAVH, ICN, INBIO, LACM, MIZA, MZSP, USNM. However, abundant material from the type locality is available in museums, and multiple specimens exist from the same miniWinkler sample.

Figures

FIGURE 3. Profile of (A) Adelomyrmex longinoi and (B) A. marginodus.

FIGURE 22. Distribution of material examined in this study: Adelomyrmex dentivagans sp. nov., A. foveolatus, A. longinoi, A. myops, A. robustus, A. silvestrii. Occurrences of A. myops in the Galapagos and A. silvestrii in northern Mexico (Tamaulipas) not shown.