Aphaenogaster punctaticeps

AntWiki: The Ants --- Online
Aphaenogaster punctaticeps
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hymenoptera
Family: Formicidae
Subfamily: Myrmicinae
Tribe: Attini
Genus: Aphaenogaster
Species: A. punctaticeps
Binomial name
Aphaenogaster punctaticeps
Mackay, W.P., 1989

Aphaenogaster punctaticeps casent0102826 profile 1.jpg

Aphaenogaster punctaticeps casent0102826 dorsal 1.jpg

Specimen Label

This ant nests in kangaroo rat mounds (Cover, pers. commun.) or in prairie dog towns (Fagerlund, pers. comun.). It apparently steals seeds from the rodents. (Mackay and Mackay 2002)


Identification

The head of this species is elongate (head width /head length 0.71), and nearly completely covered with punctures. Most of the mesosoma has similar sculpture. The propodeal spines are small. This species is similar to Aphaenogaster texana but differs in that the posterior border of the head is moderately pointed (rounded in A. texana) and the dorsum of the head is primarily punctate (rugose with punctures in the intrarugal spaces in A. texana). (Mackay and Mackay 2002)

Aphaenogaster punctaticeps is similar to A. texana, but with the posterior border of head moderately pointed as opposed to rounded (DeMarco, 2015).

Keys including this Species

Distribution

United States: Texas, New Mexico and Arizona. Mexico.

Latitudinal Distribution Pattern

Latitudinal Range: 34.406954° to 19.50138889°.

   
North
Temperate
North
Subtropical
Tropical South
Subtropical
South
Temperate

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists

Nearctic Region: United States (type locality).
Neotropical Region: Mexico.

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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Habitat

Creosotebush scrub.

Biology

Castes

Nomenclature

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

  • punctaticeps. Aphaenogaster punctaticeps Mackay, 1989: 47, figs. 1, 4, 6, 7 (w.) U.S.A. (New Mexico).
    • Status as species: Bolton, 1995b: 72; Umphrey, 1996: 557 (in key); Mackay & Mackay, 2002: 76; Mackay & Mackay, 2017: 366 (redescription).

Description

References

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

  • Cover S. P., and R. A. Johnson. 20011. Checklist of Arizona Ants. Downloaded on January 7th at http://www.asu.edu/clas/sirgtools/AZants-2011%20updatev2.pdf
  • Dattilo W. et al. 2019. MEXICO ANTS: incidence and abundance along the Nearctic-Neotropical interface. Ecology https://doi.org/10.1002/ecy.2944
  • MacKay W. P. 1989. A new Aphaenogaster (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) from southern New Mexico. Journal of the New York Entomological Society 97: 47-49.
  • Mackay W. P., and E. E. Mackay. 2002. The ants of New Mexico (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Lewiston, New York: Edwin Mellen Press, 400 pp.
  • O'Keefe S. T., J. L. Cook, T. Dudek, D. F. Wunneburger, M. D. Guzman, R. N. Coulson, and S. B. Vinson. 2000. The Distribution of Texas Ants. The Southwestern Entomologist 22: 1-92.
  • Villalvazo-Palacios M., J. F. Pérez-Domínguez, & M. Vásquez-Bolaños. 2014. New record of Aphaenogaster punctaticeps Mackay, 1989 for Mexico and first record of Aphaenogaster mexicana (Pergande, 1896) for Jalisco state (Hymenoptera: Formicidae: Myrmicinae). Acta Zoológica Mexicana, 30(2): 431-433.