Cataglyphis agostii Sharaf, 2007

Fadl, H., Bakr, R. F. & Badawy, R. M., 2007, Six new species of ants (Insecta: Hymenoptera: Formicidae) from Egypt., Proceedings of the 2 nd International Conference of the Entomological Society of Egypt 2, pp. 235-249 : 238-239

Cataglyphis agostii Sharaf , n. sp.

Holotype: 1 worker, Egypt, Gebel Ras Abuhebeig , Gebel Serbaal , S.Sinai 23.V.1997; M. R. Sharaf ( SHC) .

Type locality: Egypt, Gebel Ras Abuhebeig, Gebel Serbaal, S.Sinai.

Measurements of Holotype: TL:10.79; HL:3.32; HW:2.73; SL:3.56; SI:130.4; CI: 82.2

Diagnosis: (Figures 3, 4) (Worker): Color dark brown, anterior part of the head and the distal part of the femur yellowish; antennae, mandibles and tarsi clear yellow; femur brown or pale brown. Head longer than broad; the area between the short frontal carinae finely longitudinally striated; the whole head with fine sculptures; mandibles smooth and shining, longitudinally striated, armed with five strong brown teeth and having many long yellow hairs; posterior part of clypeus having a pair of long yellow hairs; occiput straight with four pairs of hairs.

Pronotum with one pair of short hairs, mesonotum bare, propodeum moderately low with 9 long yellow hairs. Petiole is a truncated node with a flat dorsal surface slopping forward and having relatively dense whitish pubescence in the dorsal and lateral sides and 2 pairs of hairs.

Gaster globular and shining; the first gastral tergite bare while the second with one pair of hairs at the posterior margin; the end of the gaster with few long scattered yellow hairs.

Affinities: This species belongs to the albicans group and it appears taxonomically closest to C. minimus Collingwood , 1985 which was described from Saudi Arabia. Both of them are shining black, appendages yellow, body smooth and shining almost without sculpture but C. agostii is consistently larger, TL 10.79 versus 4.4 mm; and has a larger scape index, SI 130.4 versus SI 106.5. Moreover, both species are different in pilosity, C. agostii has one pair of short hairs on pronotum, mesonotum bare, propodeum with 9 long yellow hairs.

Etymology: This species is named after the Swiss ant taxonomist, Dr. Donat Agosti, the specialist of the genus Cataglyphis , research associate, American Museum of Natural History, New York.

Remarks: This species was collected from an elevated and semi-isolated site on Gebel Sebaal, over 1500 m, and was found nesting under a rock. Only one individual was collected (the holotype).