Pheidole kusnezovi

Wilson, E. O., 2003, Pheidole in the New World. A dominant, hyperdiverse ant genus., Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press : 311

Pheidole kusnezovi , new name

Eriopheidole symbiotica Kusnezov 1952d ("1951"): 16. Combination with Pheidole by Brown 1973b: 180, creating an unresolved junior homonym of Pheidole symbiotica Wasmann 1909a: 515, now resolved with the new name kusnezovi .

types Inst. Miguel Lillo, Tucuman; Mus. Comp. Zool. Harvard.

Etymology Named after N. Kusnezov, Argentinean entomologist who discovered the species.

diagnosis A permanent, workerless social parasite of Pheidole obscurior . The queen is very small in size, with slender head and large eyes, mostly shiny body surface, subangular petiole in side view, and hexagonal postpetiolar node seen from above. Overall, it has not evolved any of the extreme parasitic traits of other socially parasitic Pheidole such as acutidens , argentina , and elecebra . measurements (mm) Queen: HW 0.64, HL 0.64, SL 0.78, EL 0.24, PW (not measured).

color Queen: appendages, anterior half of the head, and most of the sides of the mesosoma yellow; rest of head and body a contrasting light brown.

Range Known only from the type locality.

Biology Kusnezov's (1952a) field and laboratory research showed that Pheidole inquilina is a workerless inquiline of P. obscurior . He correctly pointed out that the queen represents an early stage of the kind of degenerative anatomy that characterizes ant inquilines in general.

Figure Syntype, queen. ARGENTINA: Parque General San Martin, Entre Rios (N. Kusnezov). Scale bar = 1 mm.