Pheidole biolleyi

AntWiki: The Ants --- Online
Pheidole biolleyi
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hymenoptera
Family: Formicidae
Subfamily: Myrmicinae
Tribe: Attini
Genus: Pheidole
Species: P. biolleyi
Binomial name
Pheidole biolleyi
Forel, 1908

Pheidole biolleyi jtlc000014072 profile 1.jpg

Pheidole biolleyi jtlc000014072 dorsal 1.jpg

Specimen labels

Synonyms

According to Longino (1997), colonies of biolleyi inhabit cloud forests, where they nest in the soil. He has observed workers foraging both on the ground and in low vegetation. (Wilson 2003)

Identification

See the description in the nomenclature section.

Keys including this Species

Distribution

Pheidole biolleyi occurs in the upland Central Valley of Costa Rica around Cartago and Monteverde. (Wilson 2003)

Latitudinal Distribution Pattern

Latitudinal Range: 18.416667° to 10.3°.

 
North
Temperate
North
Subtropical
Tropical South
Subtropical
South
Temperate

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists

Neotropical Region: Costa Rica (type locality), Mexico.

Distribution based on AntMaps

AntMapLegend.png

Distribution based on AntWeb specimens

Check data from AntWeb

Countries Occupied

Number of countries occupied by this species based on AntWiki Regional Taxon Lists. In general, fewer countries occupied indicates a narrower range, while more countries indicates a more widespread species.
pChart

Estimated Abundance

Relative abundance based on number of AntMaps records per species (this species within the purple bar). Fewer records (to the left) indicates a less abundant/encountered species while more records (to the right) indicates more abundant/encountered species.
pChart

Biology

Castes

Worker

Minor

Images from AntWeb

Pheidole biolleyi jtlc000014073 head 1.jpgPheidole biolleyi jtlc000014073 profile 1.jpgPheidole biolleyi jtlc000014073 dorsal 1.jpgPheidole biolleyi jtlc000014073 label 1.jpg
Syntype Pheidole tristaniWorker. Specimen code jtlc000014073. Photographer John T. Longino, uploaded by California Academy of Sciences. Owned by MHNG.
Pheidole biolleyi jtlc000014078 head 1.jpgPheidole biolleyi jtlc000014078 profile 1.jpgPheidole biolleyi jtlc000014078 dorsal 1.jpgPheidole biolleyi jtlc000014078 label 1.jpg
Syntype Pheidole biolleyiWorker. Specimen code jtlc000014078. Photographer John T. Longino, uploaded by California Academy of Sciences. Owned by MHNG.

Major

Images from AntWeb

Pheidole biolleyi jtlc000014077 head 1.jpgPheidole biolleyi jtlc000014077 profile 1.jpgPheidole biolleyi jtlc000014077 label 1.jpg
Syntype Pheidole biolleyiWorker (major/soldier). Specimen code jtlc000014077. Photographer John T. Longino, uploaded by California Academy of Sciences. Owned by MHNG.

Queen

Images from AntWeb

Pheidole biolleyi jtlc000014076 head 1.jpgPheidole biolleyi jtlc000014076 profile 1.jpgPheidole biolleyi jtlc000014076 label 1.jpg
Syntype Pheidole biolleyiQueen (alate/dealate). Specimen code jtlc000014076. Photographer John T. Longino, uploaded by California Academy of Sciences. Owned by MHNG.

Nomenclature

The following information is derived from Barry Bolton's Online Catalogue of the Ants of the World.

  • biolleyi. Pheidole biolleyi Forel, 1908b: 48 (s.w.q.m.) COSTA RICA. Senior synonym of tristani: Wilson, 2003: 170.
  • tristani. Pheidole biolleyi subsp. tristani Forel, 1908b: 50 (s.w.) COSTA RICA. Junior synonym of biolleyi: Wilson, 2003: 170.

Type Material

Taxonomic Notes

This following is included in the notes about biolleyi in Wilson (2003): Pheidole biolleyi Forel 1908c: 48. Syn.: Pheidole biolleyi tristani Forel 1908c: 50, n. syn. The syntypes of biolleyi used in the figure, and which are housed in the Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard, are from La Palma, 1600 m. The type locality given by Forel is “Costa del Tablazo,” which Longino (1997) suggests is the same as Cerro Tablazo, located at about 1500 m near Cartago. There are differences between my drawings of the La Palma specimens and Longino’s photographs in the shapes of the head and postpetiole, but otherwise the series appear close and I am treating them as conspecific. The tristani syntypes Musee d'Histoire Naturelle Genève vary in head shape in the same way, and otherwise appear identical to the La Palma biolleyi syntypes.

Longino (2019) - The syntype series of P. biolleyi subsp. tristani consists of two species. A major worker, designated here as the lectotype of tristani, is the same as P. biolleyi and maintains Wilson's synonymy of tristani under biolleyi. A minor worker from Santa Maria de Dota is identified here as the new species Pheidole tinamu. I chose to maintain the synonymy by making the major worker the lectotype, rather than making the minor worker the lectotype and resurrecting P. tristani, so that P. tinamu could have a major worker as a holotype and be based on a full type series of fresh material.

Description

From Wilson (2003): This species appears to be intermediate between the biconstricta and diligens groups, and is therefore placed in the latter only tentatively. It is distinguished in the major by variable 2- or 4-dentate hypostoma (as in biconstricta), smaller size, absence of a rugoreticulum on the head, smooth first gastral tergite, and abundant, subappressed hairs on the first gastral tergite.

MEASUREMENTS (mm) Syntype major: HW 1.14, HL 1.22, SL 0.94, EL 0.16, PW 0.60. Syntype minor: HW 0.64, HL 0.78, SL 1.00, EL 0.16, PW 0.44.

COLOR Major: concolorous light orange.

Minor: concolorous light brownish yellow.


Pheidole biolleyi Wilson 2003.jpg

Figure. Upper: syntype, major. Lower: syntype, minor. Scale bars = 1 mm.

Syntype Specimen Labels

Etymology

Named after the collector, Paul Biolley. (Wilson 2003)

References

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

  • Longino J. T. 2019. Pheidole (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) of Middle American wet forest. Zootaxa 4599: 1-126