Pheidole sagax

AntWiki: The Ants --- Online
Pheidole sagax
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hymenoptera
Family: Formicidae
Subfamily: Myrmicinae
Tribe: Attini
Genus: Pheidole
Species: P. sagax
Binomial name
Pheidole sagax
Wilson, 2003

The type series was collected from a forested ravine. (Wilson 2003)

Identification

See the description in the nomenclature section.

Keys including this Species

Distribution

From Wilson (2003): Known from the type series and from Granada, Nicaragua, col. C. F. Baker.

Latitudinal Distribution Pattern

Latitudinal Range: 4.190329° to -4.1°.

 
North
Temperate
North
Subtropical
Tropical South
Subtropical
South
Temperate

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists

Neotropical Region: Colombia (type locality), Ecuador, Nicaragua, Venezuela.

Distribution based on AntMaps

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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

Nomenclature

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

  • sagax. Pheidole sagax Wilson, 2003: 227, figs. (s.w.) COLOMBIA.

Unless otherwise noted the text for the remainder of this section is reported from the publication that includes the original description.

Description

A member of the diligens group, close to Pheidole diligens, Pheidole radoszkowskii, and allied species, distinguished as follows.

Major: yellow; in full-face view, profiles of occipital lobes form almost perfect semicircles; in dorsal-oblique view, humerus is subangulate and pronotum weakly bilobous; petiolar node broad, its apex in side view broadly rounded; all of head dorsum and mesosoma foveolate; gaster entirely smooth and shiny; profile of head in full-face view bare of pilosity, except for clypeus.

Minor: yellow; occiput slightly narrowed, with nuchal collar; most of posterior dorsal surface of head and all of gaster smooth and shiny.

MEASUREMENTS (mm) Holotype major: HW 1.14, HL 1.14, SL 0.76, EL 0.16, PW 0.54. Paratype minor: HW 0.54, HL 0.62, SL 0.70, EL 0.14, PW 0.36.

COLOR Major and minor: concolorous medium yellow.


Pheidole sagax Wilson 2003.jpg

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

Type Material

COLOMBIA: 5 km north of Villavicencio, Meta, col. William L. and Doris E. Brown. Museum of Comparative Zoology

Etymology

L sagax, referring to the globose occipital lobes.

References

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

  • Mertl, A.L., K.T. Ryder Wilkie and J.F.A. Traniello. 2009. Impact of Flooding on the Species Richness, Density and Composition of Amazonian Litter-Nesting Ants. Biotropica 41(5):633-641
  • Wilson, E.O. 2003. Pheidole in the New World: A Dominant, Hyperdiverse Genus. Harvard University Press