Camponotus (Dinomyrmex) langi, Wheeler, W. M., 1922

Wheeler, W. M., 1922, The ants collected by the American Museum Congo Expedition., Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 45, pp. 39-269 : 241-243

Camponotus (Dinomyrmex) langi , new species

Text Figure 62

Worker maxima.- Length 12.5 to 14 mm.

Head unusually small, decidedly longer than broad (4.1 X3 mm., without the mandibles), slightly narrower in front than behind, with broadly and not deeply excised posterior border and evenly, feebly convex sides. Eyes rather small and elongate, situated twice their length from the posterior border of the head. Mandibles rather small, convex, with 7 short teeth. Clypeus carinate, its anterior border emarginate on each side, the median lobe very short, its border coarsely crenulate, its corners obtuse. Frontal area small, subtriangular; frontal carinae closely approximated, especially in front. Antennae long (4.5 mm.) and slender, not enlarged distally, their bases distinctly flattened but not dilated, reaching nearly half their length beyond the posterior border of the head; funiculi long, filiform. Thorax low and narrow; metanotum distinct; epinotum long, its base nearly four times the length of the declivity, with a distinct, transverse impression in the middle. Petiole very low, subquadrate, and as broad as long when seen from above, in profile scarcely higher than long, obliquely truncated anteriorly and posteriorly, with very blunt superior border. Gaster long and narrow. Legs very long and thin; tibiae triangular in crosssection, deeply channelled on all three surfaces, their flexor borders without row of bristles.

Mandibles, clypeus, legs, sides of thorax, and sides and venter of gaster somewhat shining, remainder of the body opaque. Mandibles more opaque at the base, where they are densely shagreened, smooth and coarsely punctate in the middle, coarsely striated towards the tip. Clypeus, head, and thorax very densely shagreened, the head more distinctly; clypeus, cheeks, and sides of head with small, scattered shallow, piligerous punctures. Gaster very finely and transversely shagreened,with very sparse piligerous punctures.

Hairs and pubescence golden yellow, very sparse and short, more abundant on the gula and top of the head, very short, sparse, and appressed on the appendages. Sides of head with short, sparse, stiff hairs. Pubescence very dilute, distinct on the gaster and all parts of the head, longest on the gula.

Head and 'gaster deep castaneous; mandibles dark red, with black borders; clypeus and adjacent portions of cheeks often reddish; tips and insertions of antennal scapes, palpi, thorax, petiole, trochanters, and femora dull brownish yellow; upper surface of pronotum, mesonotum, and base of epinotum dark brown with paler sutures; tibiae, femora, and tarsi dark brown, the latter somewhat paler at their tips; posterior borders of gastric segments rather broadly yellowish and shining.

Worker minima.-

Length 11 to 12 mm.

Head very long (3.4 mm., without the mandibles) compared with its width (1.9 mm.), the portion in front of the eyes nearly as broad as long, a little broader in front, with straight sides; behind the eyes it narrows rapidly into a neck with concave sides, the occipital border being somewhat less than one-third of the anterior border. Eyes prominent, situated more than twice their length from the occipital border. Clypeus resembling that of the maxima. Antennae longer, the scapes not flattened, straight, reaching fully three-fifths of their length beyond the occipital border. Thorax and petiole as in the maxima but lower, and the transverse impression on the base of the epinotum scarcely indicated.

Sculpture much finer, pilosity and pubescence even sparser than in the maxima. Color paler; clypeus, cheeks, funiculi, petiole, ventral portions of thorax, coxae, and femora yellow; mandibles, scapes, posterior portion of head, tibiae, and dorsal surface of thorax and gaster brown.

Female (dealated).- Length 21 mm.

Head large, slightly longer than broad, broader behind than in front, with straight sides and feebly and broadly excised posterior border. Mandibles more convex than in the maxima, clypeus very similar. Antennal scapes very slightly flattened at the base, extending nearly one-third their length beyond the posterior corners of the head. Thorax through the wing-insertions not broader than the head; mesonotum as long as broad. Petiole much higher than in the worker, nearly twice as high as long, elliptical from behind, its anterior and posterior surfaces convex, its border narrowed above and slightly notched in the middle, in profile rather acute.

Mandibles shining, coarsely punctate, their bases opaque. Head and body more shining than in the maxima, but similarly sculptured.

Pilosity like that of the maxima but the pubescence very long and abundant on the prosterna, fore coxae, and lower portions of the metapleurae; as long but sparser on the gula and posterior surfaces of the head; short on the scapes, but longer and oblique towards their tips. Tibia; and tarsi with short, stiff, oblique hairs.

Head black; mandibles, sutures of thorax, upper portions of mesopleurae, and pro- and mesonotum, scutellum, and gaster castaneous; remainder of thorax, petiole, middle and hind coxae, and trochanters yellowish red. Legs castaneous, tips of tarsi paler.

Male.- Length 13 mm.

Head twice as long as broad, the portion in front of the eyes long, with subparallel, slightly concave cheeks, the posterior portion rapidly narrowed to the occiput, the sides and occipital border nearly straight. Eyes convex, at the middle of the sides of the head. Mandibles spatulate, bluntly pointed, edentate but with overlapping tips. Clypeus carinate, without an anterior lobe, its border broadly rounded. Antennae very long and slender. Thorax and gaster long and narrow; epinotum elongate, evenly convex, sloping, without distinct base and declivity. Petiole much as in the worker minima. Legs very long.

Mandibles, head, thorax, and legs rather opaque; epinotum, petiole, and gaster shining, punctuation feeble and inconspicuous.

Hairs yellow, short, and sparse as in the worker minima.

Brownish yellow; head, mesonotum, scutellum, tibiae, and tarsi brown; mandibles darker. Wings distinctly yellow, with yellowish brown veins and dark brown pterostigma.

Described from forty-one workers from Faradje (type locality), a female and worker minima from Garamba, and two males from Faradje (Lang and Chapin). The following note accompanies the specimens from Faradje: "These long-legged ants are very fond of sugar or anything sweet, such as fruits, etc. They are seldom seen during the daytime. The colony had made its nest between boxes that were piled up on the verandah of a house, and the ants were assembled in a hollow space about half an inch wide. A few fibrous particles of detritus were used in the construction of the nest." There are no data accompanying the two specimens from Garamba, so that I am not certain that the female is cospecific with the worker.

C. langi is very peculiar in the small, narrow head of the maxima and the long neck-like occipital region of the minima. There can be no doubt that what I have described as the maxima is really the largest worker form. Fifteen specimens of the series all agree in the shape and size of the head as represented in the figure; the remaining specimens are all minimae. Mediae, apparently, do not exist.