Tetramorium sikorae Forel

Bolton, B., 1979, The ant tribe Tetramoriini (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). The genus Tetramorium Mayr in the Malagasy region and in the New World., Bulletin of the British Museum (Natural History) Entomology 38, pp. 129-181 : 138-139

publication ID

6435

DOI

https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6282896

persistent identifier

https://treatment.plazi.org/id/59DBF91C-29DA-E64B-07D7-E04D6A9FA3AB

treatment provided by

Christiana

scientific name

Tetramorium sikorae Forel
status

 

Tetramorium sikorae Forel View in CoL View at ENA   HNS

Tetramorium (Xiphomyrmex) sikorae Forel, 1892: 522   HNS . Syntype workers, Madagascar: Amparafaravantsiv (Sikora) (MHN, Geneva) [examined]. Xiphomyrmex latior Santschi   HNS , 1926: 243. Syntype workers, Madagascar: Fananantsoa [= Fianorantsoa on data label] (Descarpentries) (NM, Basle) [examined]. Syn. n.

Worker. TL 2.7 - 3.2, HL 0.64 - 0.70, HW 0.54 - 0.60, CI 84 - 91, SL 0.40 - 0.46, SI 71 - 80, PW 0 - 42 - 0.48, AL 0.74 - 0.88 (5 measured).

Mandibles smooth with scattered small pits, median clypeal carina distinct. Frontal carinae extended back well beyond the level of the eyes, almost parallel and forming the upper margins of a shallow scrobe which is capable of accommodating the scape. With the alitrunk in profile the metanotal groove shallowly impressed. Propodeum armed with a pair of short, triangular teeth which are shorter than the broadly triangular metapleural lobes. Dorsum of head with very fine longitudinal rugulae and a distinct interrugal sculpture of fine but conspicuous superficial puncturation. Dorsal alitrunk finely rugulose, the pedicel and gaster unsculptured, smooth and shining. Erect or suberect long, fine hairs present on all dorsal surfaces of the body but may be absent from the pedicel segments. Colour yellow-brown.

A small and quite distinctive species, sikorae   HNS has nevertheless been confused with the cognatum   HNS complex in the past. The best character for separating them lies in the fact that sikorae   HNS has numerous erect or suberect hairs on the first gastral tergite; such hairs being absent in cognatum   HNS and its allies.

Within the schaufussi-group, sikorae   HNS forms the central species of what may be loosely termed the sikorae-complex, including the close pair of sikorae   HNS and schaufussi   HNS , and the rather more distantly related xanthogaster   HNS , all of them possessing, within the schaufussi-group, hairs on the first gastral tergite. In xanthogaster   HNS the frontal carinae are feeble, scrobes are absent and the propodeal spines are quite long, besides which the species is bicoloured. The two remaining species are best separated by the characters given under schaufussi   HNS .

Material examined

Madagascar: vic. Andasibe (= Perinet) (W. L. & D. E. Brown). Reunion I. (ex coll. Mayr).

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Arthropoda

Class

Insecta

Order

Hymenoptera

Family

Formicidae

Genus

Tetramorium

Loc

Tetramorium sikorae Forel

Bolton, B. 1979
1979
Loc

Tetramorium (Xiphomyrmex) sikorae

Forel 1892: 522
1892
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