Temnothorax chandleri (Mackay), Mayr, 1861

Ward, P. S., 2005, A synoptic review of the ants of California (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)., Zootaxa 936, pp. 1-68 : 19

[[ Temnothorax chandleri (Mackay) ]]

Temnothorax chandleri (Mackay) is evidently closely related to L. nitens and might prove to be conspecific with it. The main diagnostic feature of T. chandleri is the heavily sculptured head, which lacks a shiny surface except for a median strip. The type series consisted of three workers, of which the holotype was destroyed while in transit to MCZC (Stefan Cover, pers. comm.). A paratype worker was said to be deposited at the University of New Hampshire (Mackay 2000: 331) but no specimen is present there (Don Chandler, pers. comm.). Thus, the only known type specimen is the paratype worker in WPMC. Here is a description of that specimen which I examined briefly in August 2003:

Petiole cuneate in profile; HW ~0.57 mm; head densely reticulate-foveolate (with weak longitudinal orientation), except for a small shiny central strip which does not extend to the posterior margin; mesosoma densely reticulate-foveolate; propodeal spines short, blunt; dorsum of mesosoma with about 24 short, erect hairs in profile; abdominal tergite IV smooth and shiny except for weak basal striolae; postpetiole moderately broad, length ~0.7× width; pale yellow brown.

This paratype agrees with five workers collected recently at Black Butte Lake , Glenn Co., California (P. S. Ward #14606 ), in a fallen log of cottonwood ( Populus fremontii ) in riparian woodland . The types of T. chandleri were collected from leaf litter at the edge of a slough (Mackay 2000). These limited biological data suggest that T. chandleri may be a riparian habitat specialist, whereas T. nitens is found in a diverse array of habitats from sea level to ~2600m.