Azteca sericea (Mayr

Longino, J. T., 2007, A taxonomic review of the genus Azteca (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in Costa Rica and a global revision of the aurita group., Zootaxa 1491, pp. 1-63 : 61

publication ID	21311
publication LSID	lsid:zoobank.org:pub:C31A1226-724D-4D1A-8471-E6BB441EE3EF
DOI	https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6246566
persistent identifier	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/85BAF739-AE4A-C669-EE93-0726129F94A2
treatment provided by	Thomas
scientific name	Azteca sericea (Mayr
status

Treatment

Azteca sericea (Mayr View in CoL HNS 1866)

Iridomyrmex sericeus Mayr HNS 1866:498. Syntype workers: Mexico, in pseudobulbs of Schomburgkia tibicinus (Heller) [ NHMW] (examined).

Liometopum instabile (F. Smith) HNS (part): Mayr 1878:870.

Azteca sericea Mayr HNS : Emery 1893:134.

Azteca instabilis var. mexicana Emery HNS , 1896a:3 [n. nov. for Iridomyrmex xanthochrous Mayr HNS 1866:497 (not Roger 1863)]. Syntype workers: Mexico (Norton) [ NHMW] (examined). NEW SYNONYMY.

The history of the name mexicana HNS is complicated. Roger (1863) described A. xanthochroa HNS based on a single queen from Mexico. Mayr (1866) described workers from Mexico as the workers of xanthochroa HNS . Emery (1893) examined these workers, identifying them as xanthochroa HNS and making xanthochroa HNS a variety of instabilis HNS . Emery (1896a), having discovered that xanthochroa HNS was a species distinct from instabilis HNS , reidentified these same workers as a new variety, instabilis var. mexicana HNS . In the Mayr collection, under " instabilis Sm. var. xanthochroa Rog. HNS ," are several pins with Emery determination labels. The only Mexican material among these are two workers, with labels "Mex, Norton," identified by Emery as " A. instabilis var. xanthochroa HNS ." These are the syntypes of mexicana HNS , and when I examined them I added red labels stating " syntypus Az. mexicana Emery HNS 1896, det. J. Longino 1990." I compared the workers directly with the types of A. sericea HNS .

To confuse matters, a series labeled "Mexico, No. 211," with red type labels indicating they are types of instabilis mexicana HNS has been distributed to American museums. Specimens from LACM have an additional label indicating they are from the Pergande collection. I have examined specimens of this series from MCZC and LACM; and AMNH type labels on the MCZC material suggest there is also material at AMNH. These are not syntypes of mexicana HNS . I identify them as A. pittieri HNS .