Strumigenys sisyrata group

Strumigenys sisyrata group Bolton (2000)

Species

Malesian-Oriental-East Palaeartic

Worker Diagnosis

Apical fork of mandible of 2 spiniform teeth; a single small intercalary tooth between the fork teeth. A single small preapical tooth present that is similar in size to the intercalary, located on inner margin at about one-third the distance from apex to base; length of preapical tooth distinctly less than 0.50 X maximum width of mandible. Mandible straight or very feebly curved; MI 54-57.

Anterior clypeal margin transverse or shallowly concave.

Scape slender and subcylindrical, moderate to long; SI 87-92.

Scrobe obsolete behind level of eye.

Apical antennomere not constricted basally.

Ventrolateral margin of head with or without a preocular impression or notch; with head in profile the dorsal and ventral outlines without impressions and with very small postbuccal groove. Dorsal surfaces of occipital lobes conspicuously depressed and sharply marginate laterally.

Propodeal spines thin and needle-like, declivity with a narrow lamella whose posterior (free) margin is straight, or entire propodeum masked by spongiform tissue.

Spongiform appendages of waist segments all present, sometimes extremely developed.

Pilosity. Dorsolateral margin of head with one or more laterally projecting sub flagellate to flagellate hairs and a long flagellate hair at the pronotal humerus; flagellates also present on dorsal alitrunk and first gastral tergite. Femora, tarsi and basitarsi with erect flagellate hairs and the femora also with dense appressed pubescence.

Sculpture. Cephalic dorsum not solely reticulate-punctate, with conspicuous rugulose sculpture also present. Dorsal alitrunk rugulose or masked by spongiform tissue; not reticulate-punctate.

Notes

The two species included here are peculiar to New Guinea and apparently rare; they are large (HL > 1.00) and have long legs, maximum length of hind femur > 1.00. The mandibular dentition is characteristic. The preapical tooth is very small and shifted so far away from the apicodorsal tooth that its base is closer to the mandible midlength than to the apicodorsal tooth. The small size of the preapical tooth is emphasised by the fact that it is no larger than the intercalary tooth of the apical fork.

References

Bolton, B. 2000. The ant tribe Dacetini. Memoirs of the American Entomological Institute. 65:1-1028.