Key to Pseudomyrmex ferrugineus group species

AntWiki: The Ants --- Online

This worker and queen key is based on: Ward, P.S. 2017. A review of the Pseudomyrmex ferrugineus and Pseudomyrmex goeldii species groups: acacia-ants and relatives (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Zootaxa. 4227:524–542. (doi: 10.11646/zootaxa.4227.4.3).

Key to species of the P. ferrugineus group, based on the workers and queens. This key incorporates the two new species into the previously published key for the P. ferrugineus group (Ward 1993: 131–132). The latter should be consulted for identification of the remaining species. Sample sizes are given for each set of measurements.

You may also be interested in

1

  • Eyes more elongate (worker REL 0.48–0.55, n = 22; queen REL 0.47–0.50, n = 4); profemur more robust (worker FI 0.42– 0.46, n = 22; queen FI 0.46–0.51, n = 4); worker metanotal groove weakly impressed; dead twig inhabitant . . . . . 2
  • Eyes less elongate (worker REL 0.39–0.50, n = 280; queen REL 0.38–0.48, n = 166); profemur more slender (worker FI 0.35– 0.41, n = 22; queen FI 0.39–0.44, n = 13); worker metanotal groove well developed; obligate inhabitants of swollen-thorn acacias (Vachellia species) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . remaining species; see couplets 11–19 of key in Ward (1993)

2

return to couplet #1

  • Large species (worker HW 1.15–1.28, n = 14; queen HW 1.28, n = 1) with longer legs (worker LHT 0.91–1.00, n = 14; queen LHT 1.04, n = 1) and broader head (worker CI 1.01–1.05, n = 14; queen CI 0.88, n = 1); palp formula 4,3 . . . . . Pseudomyrmex evitus
Ward 2017-9.jpg
Ward 2017-9a.jpg
  • Smaller species (worker HW 0.94–0.99, n = 8; queen HW 1.01–1.06, n = 3) with shorter legs (worker LHT 0.73–0.77, n = 8; queen LHT 0.80–0.83, n = 3) and more elongate head (worker CI 0.90–0.94, n = 8; queen CI 0.85–0.86, n = 3); palp formula 5,3 . . . . . Pseudomyrmex feralis
Ward 2017-9c.jpg
Ward 2017-9d.jpg