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Pheidole boruca
| Pheidole boruca | |
|---|---|
| |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Hymenoptera |
| Family: | Formicidae |
| Subfamily: | Myrmicinae |
| Tribe: | Attini |
| Genus: | Pheidole |
| Species: | P. boruca |
| Binomial name | |
| Pheidole boruca Wilson, 2003
| |
Longino (1997): very common in Winkler samples from mature wet forest, from 50 m elevation at La Selva Biological Station to cloud forest in the Talamancas and at Monteverde. Longino found nests under pieces of dead wood on the ground, and observed workers foraging on the ground day and night.
Identification
See the description in the nomenclature section.
Keys including this Species
Distribution
Atlantic slope and montane regions of Costa Rica (Longino 1997).
Latitudinal Distribution Pattern
Latitudinal Range: 15.6864989° to 9.4817844°.
| North Temperate |
North Subtropical |
Tropical | South Subtropical |
South Temperate |
- Source: AntMaps
Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists
Neotropical Region: Colombia, Costa Rica (type locality), Honduras.
Distribution based on AntMaps
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. |
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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. |
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Biology
Castes
Worker
Minor
Images from AntWeb
    
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| Worker. Specimen code casent0624232. Photographer Jeremy Pilllow, uploaded by University of Utah. | Owned by JTLC. |
Major
Images from AntWeb
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| Worker (major/soldier). Specimen code inbiocri002279551. Photographer Jeremy Pilllow, uploaded by University of Utah. | Owned by JTLC. |
Nomenclature
The following information is derived from Barry Bolton's Online Catalogue of the Ants of the World.
- boruca. Pheidole boruca Wilson, 2003: 172, figs. (s.w.) COSTA RICA.
Unless otherwise noted the text for the remainder of this section is reported from the publication that includes the original description.
Description
Major: carinulae originating on the frontal lobes curve laterally above the eyes, many reaching the lateral margins of the head seen in full-face view; posterior quarter of dorsal surface of head, including occiput, covered by scattered conspicuous foveae. Media caste present in type series (a possible developmental anomaly). Similar to Pheidole violacea of Costa Rica, especially in the peculiar pattern of cephalic carinulae, but nests on the ground (instead of in arboreal ant gardens), lacks the bluish reflections on the body of the minor, has a media caste, and is different in the major and minor castes in many details of body form, sculpturing, and pilosity as illustrated. See also the less similar Pheidole aculifera (in the fallax group), Pheidole prostrata and Pheidole variegata (= Pheidole pubiventris).
MEASUREMENTS (mm) Holotype major: HW 1.10, HL 1.10, SL 0.78, EL 0.20, PW 0.48. Paratype minor: HW 0.54, HL 0.66, SL 0.84, EL 0.12, PW 0.36.
COLOR Major: body dark, almost blackish brown; appendages medium brown.
Minor: body blackish brown, appendages medium brown.
Figure. Upper: holotype, major. Lower: paratype, minor, and partial head of media. Scale bars = 1 mm.
Type Material
COSTA RICA: Monteverde, Puntarenas, 10°18'N 84°48'W, 1500 m, col. J. T. Longino. Museum of Comparative Zoology
Etymology
Named after the Boruca Amerindians, one of the surviving native tribes of Costa Rica.
References
- Wilson, E. O. 2003. Pheidole in the New World: A dominant, hyperdiverse ant genus. Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA. (page 172, fig. major, media, minor described)
- Guerrero, R.J., Fernandez, F., Escarraga, M.E., Perez-Pedraza, L.F., Serna, F., Mackay, M.P., Sandoval, V., Vergara, V., Suarez, D., Garcia, E.I., Sanchez, A., Meneses, A.D., Tocora, M.C., Sosa-Calvo, J. 2018. New records of myrmicine ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) for Colombia. Revista Colombiana de Entomología 44: 238-259 (DOI 10.25100/socolen.v44i2.7115).
- Vázquez-Franco, C.M., Morrone, J.J. 2022. The genus Pheidole (Hymenoptera: Formicidae: Myrmicinae) in Puebla, Mexico. Revista Mexicana de Biodiversidad 93: e933820 (doi:10.22201/ib.20078706e.2022.93.3820).
References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics
- Longino J. T. 2013. Ants of Nicargua. Consulted on 18 Jan 2013. https://sites.google.com/site/longinollama/reports/ants-of-nicaragua
- Longino J. T. L., and M. G. Branstetter. 2018. The truncated bell: an enigmatic but pervasive elevational diversity pattern in Middle American ants. Ecography 41: 1-12.
- Longino J. et al. ADMAC project. Accessed on March 24th 2017 at https://sites.google.com/site/admacsite/
- Ottonetti L., L. Tucci, F. Frizzi, G. Chelazzi, and G. Santini. 2010. Changes in ground-foraging ant assemblages along a disturbance gradient in a tropical agricultural landscape. Ethology Ecology & Evolution 22: 7386.
- Smith M. A., W. Hallwachs, D. H. Janzen. 2014. Diversity and phylogenetic community structure of ants along a Costa Rican elevational gradient. Ecography 37(8): 720-731.
- Wilson, E.O. 2003. Pheidole in the New World: A Dominant, Hyperdiverse Genus. Harvard University Press