Vollenhovia pfeifferi Bharti, Dhadwal & Rilta, 2023

Akbar, Shahid Ali, Bharti, Himender, Schifani, Enrico & Wachkoo, Aijaz Ahmad, 2023, Overview of the ant genus Vollenhovia (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) in India and Sri Lanka, with an illustrated key and the description of a new species, European Journal of Taxonomy 908, pp. 77-107 : 92

Vollenhovia pfeifferi Bharti, Dhadwal & Rilta, 2023

Fig. 9

Vollenhovia pfeifferi Bharti, Dhadwal & Rilta in Dhadwal et al., 2023: 4.

Type locality: Kerala, Parambikulum Tiger Reserve, Karimala [Holotype: PUAC, type series examined in Dhadwal et al. 2023] .

Material examined

INDIA • 8 workers; Kerala, Periyar Tiger Reserve ; 9°46′ N, 77°14′ E; alt. 1005 m; 10 Oct. 2011; hand picking; S.A. Akbar leg.; PUAC0018 to PUAC0025 .

Worker measurements & indices (11 specimens, 2 colonies, 2 localities)

CL 0.56–0.70, CW 0.51–0.55, CS 0.53–0.62, EL 0.09–0.13, ML 0.60–0.76, PEH 0.22–0.33, PEL 0.16– 0.22, PEW 0.18–0.21, PPH 0.19–0.24, PPL 0.16–0.23, PPW 0.21–0.25, PW 0.37–0.43, SL 0.34–0.40. Indices: CL/CW 1.10–1.30, EL/ CS 0.16–0.22, ML / CS 1.00–1.36, PEH/ CS 0.39–0.63, PEL/ CS 0.27– 0.39, PEW / CS 0.31–0.37, PPH/ CS 0.32–0.43, PPL/ CS 0.27–0.41, PPW/ CS 0.35–0.45, PW / CS 0.64– 0.78, SL/ CS 0.61–072.

Remarks

Due to its dentiform propodeal spines, Vollenhovia pfeifferi appears unique among its congeners in the region and thus is easily recognizable ( Dhadwal et al. 2023). We report a second locality for this recently described taxon of the Western Ghats, based on samples collected in the Periyar Tiger Reserve.

Distribution

India (Kerala) ( Dhadwal et al. 2023).

Figures

Fig. 9.Vollenhovia pfeifferi Bharti, Dhadwal &Rilta, 2023,worker from India (PUAC0018, photographer: Shahid Ali Akbar). A. Head, full face view. B. Habitus, lateral view. C. Habitus, dorsal view. D. Periyar Tiger Reserve, Kerala, collection site.