Crematogaster arcuata

Crematogaster arcuata
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Hymenoptera
Family:	Formicidae
Subfamily:	Myrmicinae
Tribe:	Crematogastrini
Genus:	Crematogaster
Species:	C. arcuata
Binomial name
Crematogaster arcuata Forel, 1899 Specimen Labels
Synonyms
Crematogaster arcuata aruga Forel, 1913

The relatively few collections of this species have been from forested sites, sea level to 1000m elevation, in moist to wet forest habitats and cerrado. The only known Costa Rican collection is from the Osa Peninsula. The one nest I have observed was on a roadside in Venezuela. It was in an area of small farms and coffee plantations, with a dense stand of a zingiberaceous plant along the roadside. The ants inhabited a loose-weave carton nest that enveloped several leaves in the clump of zingibers. I found a single colony queen in the center of the carton nest. Workers have been collected from low vegetation. Davidson has observed workers tending Homoptera and visiting extrafloral nectaries in Peru. (Longino 2003)

Identification

Longino (2003) - The very thin, almost needle-like propodeal spines uniquely identify this species. Additional characters are largely punctate face, amber dorsal setae, and erect tibial pilosity. The rugae on the face of the lectotype form a concentric pattern. Specimens from elsewhere are variable in the strength and orientation of face sculpture. The syntypes of the synonymized Crematogaster aruga are within the range of variation for arcuata, with facial rugae somewhat reduced relative to the average condition.

Keys including this Species

• Key to Crematogaster of Costa Rica

Distribution

Longino (2003) - Costa Rica to southern Brazil, Bolivia.

Latitudinal Distribution Pattern

Latitudinal Range: 10.5824° to -12.043°.

North Temperate	North Subtropical	Tropical	South Subtropical	South Temperate

• Source: AntMaps

Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists

Neotropical Region: Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Panama (type locality), Panama (type locality), Peru, Venezuela.

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.

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.

Nomenclature

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

• arcuata. Crematogaster sulcata r. arcuata Forel, 1899c: 84, pl. 4, fig. 3 (w.) PANAMA.
  • Type-material: lectotype worker (by designation of Longino, 2003a: 35), paralectotype workers (number not stated).
  • Type-locality: lectotype Panama: Volcan de Chiriqui, 3-4000 ft (Champion); paralectotypes with same data.
  • Type-depositories: MHNG (lectotype); MHNG, MSNG (paralectotypes).
  • Longino, 2003a: 36 (q.).
  • Combination in C. (Physocrema): Forel, 1913l: 234;
  • combination in C. (Orthocrema): Emery, 1922e: 134;
  • combination in C. (Neocrema): Santschi, 1922d: 244; Kempf, 1972a: 83.
  • Status as species: Forel, 1913l: 234; Emery, 1922e: 134; Wheeler, W.M. 1942: 193; Kempf, 1972a: 83; Bolton, 1995b: 147; Longino, 2003a: 35 (redescription); Bezděčková, et al. 2015: 116; Pedraza & Fernández, 2019: 895.
  • Senior synonym of aruga: Longino, 2003a: 35.
  • Distribution: Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Panama, Peru, Venezuela.
• aruga. Crematogaster (Physocrema) arcuata var. aruga Forel, 1913l: 234 (w.) BRAZIL (Espirito Santo).
  • Type-material: syntype workers (number not stated).
  • Type-locality: Brazil: Espirito Santo, no. 16787 (von Ihering).
  • Type-depository: MHNG.
  • Combination in C. (Orthocrema): Emery, 1922e: 134;
  • combination in C. (Neocrema): Kempf, 1972a: 83.
  • Subspecies of arcuata: Emery, 1922e: 134; Borgmeier, 1927c: 92; Kempf, 1972a: 83; Bolton, 1995b: 148.
  • Junior synonym of arcuata: Longino, 2003a: 35.

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

Description

Worker

Longino (2003) - HL 0.701, 0.629, 0.785; HW 0.772, 0.661, 0.867; HC 0.679, 0.600, 0.773; SL 0.776, 0.733, 0.860; EL 0.166, 0.147, 0.184; A11L 0.287; A11W 0.131; A10L 0.148; A10W 0.110; A09L 0.107; A09W 0.085; A08L 0.080; A08W 0.066; WL 0.880, 0.829, 0.948; SPL 0.187, 0.206, 0.302; PTH 0.201, 0.177, 0.224; PTL 0.289, 0.283, 0.330; PTW 0.228, 0.191, 0.253; PPL 0.187, 0.184, 0.212; PPW 0.285, 0.243, 0.285; CI 110, 105, 110; OI 24, 23, 23; SI 111, 117, 110; PTHI 70, 63, 68; PTWI 79, 67, 77; PPI 152, 132, 134; SPI 21, 25, 32; ACI 0.07.

Color dark red brown to black.

Head subquadrate, with compound eyes projecting beyond lateral margins in full face view; mandibles striate; clypeus emarginate anteriorly and often with anteromedian impression, convex, shiny, with widely spaced weak rugulae that are longitudinal to transversely arcing; face punctatorugose over much of surface, with variably developed anteromedian strip on face smooth and shiny; scapes with a combination of erect and subdecumbent setae, setae abundant, as long as width of scape or greater; antennal club not well defined, terminal 3-5 segments gradually lengthening and becoming increasingly densely pubescent, or in some cases relatively distinctly 3-segmented; face with abundant long erect amber to black setae, both on dorsal surface and projecting from sides, forming a black crown in full face view; malar spaces and ventral surface of head with abundant short erect to suberect setae.

In lateral view, dorsal profile of promesonotum low, weakly convex, mesonotum differentiated from pronotum, projecting and forming elevated anterior boss; propodeal suture broad, well impressed; mesonotum meeting dorsal face of propodeum at angle, dorsal and posterior faces of propodeum distinct; propodeum strongly swollen, large relative to promesonotum, nearly as wide as pronotum in dorsal view; propodeal spines thin, almost needle-like, of variable length but usually long; side of pronotum evenly punctate and medially impressed; katepisternum evenly punctate; anepisternum punctate to rugose; side of propodeum faintly microareolate to smooth and shining, always with much weaker sculpture than side of pronotum and katepisternum; promesonotal dorsum and dorsal face of propodeum punctatorugose; posterior face of propodeum smooth and shiny; promesonotum and dorsal face of propodeum with abundant long coarse black to amber setae, no setae on posterior face of propodeum; legs with combination of abundant suberect and decumbent setae.

Petiole in side view subtriangular, strongly to faintly punctate; anteroventral tooth weak to absent; dorsal face rectangular, longer than wide, smooth and shiny on anterior two thirds, faintly microaerolate on posterior third, with row of four coarse black setae across posterior margin; postpetiole with short ventral tooth, postpetiole in dorsal view subquadrate, wider than long, posterior margin emarginate, with weak to pronounced longitudinal median sulcus, and abundant long coarse black setae; fourth abdominal tergite with faint microareolate sculpture; fourth abdominal tergite with abundant erect coarse black setae.

Queen

Longino (2003) - (Venezuela) In lateral profile dorsal face of propodeum sloping obliquely from postscutellum, such that most of propodeum is posterior to scutellum (in contrast to normal queens, in which dorsal face of propodeum drops steeply from postscutellum and much of propodeum appears ventral to scutellum and postscutellum); face covered with widely-spaced clathrate rugae, interspaces shiny; pronotum similarly rugose anteriorly, grading to finer striae and dense punctation on sides; mesonotum longitudinally reticulate rugose; upper anepisternum longitudinally rugose striate, remainder of anepisternum and katepisternum smooth and shiny; dorsal and upper lateral face of propodeum rugose, posterior and lower lateral face smooth and shiny; propodeal spines distinct, sharp; petiole, postpetiole, and fourth abdominal tergite smooth and shining; dorsal face of petiole proportionally shorter than petiole of worker, only slightly longer than wide; abundant short amber to whitish erect setae on entire dorsum including face, mesosoma, petiole, postpetiole, and fourth abdominal tergite; size characters as in Figures.

Type Material

Longino (2003) - Syntype workers: Panama, Volcan de Chiriqui, 3-4000ft (Champion) Museo Civico di Storia Naturale, Genoa, Musee d'Histoire Naturelle Genève (examined, MHNG worker here designated LECTOTYPE).

References

• Emery, C. 1922c. Hymenoptera. Fam. Formicidae. Subfam. Myrmicinae. [part]. Genera Insectorum 174B: 95-206 (page 134, Combination in C. (Orthocrema))
• Forel, A. 1899f. Formicidae. [part]. Biol. Cent.-Am. Hym. 3: 81-104 (page 84, pl. 4, fig. 3 worker described)
• Forel, A. 1913m. Fourmis d'Argentine, du Brésil, du Guatémala & de Cuba reçues de M. M. Bruch, Prof. v. Ihering, Mlle Baez, M. Peper et M. Rovereto. Bull. Soc. Vaudoise Sci. Nat. 49: 203-250 (page 234, Combination in C. (Physocrema), Raised to species)
• Kempf, W. W. 1972b. Catálogo abreviado das formigas da regia~o Neotropical. Stud. Entomol. 15: 3-344 (page 83, Combination in C. (Neocrema))
• Longino, J.T. 2003a. The Crematogaster of Costa Rica. Zootaxa 151: 1-150.
• Santschi, F. 1922e. Description de nouvelles fourmis de l'Argentine et pays limitrophes. An. Soc. Cient. Argent. 94: 241-262 (page 244, Combination in C. (Neocrema))

References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics

• Bezdeckova K., P. Bedecka, and I. Machar. 2015. A checklist of the ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) of Peru. Zootaxa 4020 (1): 101–133.
• Blaimer B. B. 2012. Acrobat ants go global – Origin, evolution and systematics of the genus Crematogaster (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 65: 421-436.
• Davidson D. W., S. C. Cook, R. R. Snelling and T. H. Chua. 2003. Explaining the Abundance of Ants in Lowland Tropical Rainforest Canopies. Science 300: 969-972.
• Fernández, F. and S. Sendoya. 2004. Lista de las hormigas neotropicales. Biota Colombiana Volume 5, Number 1.
• INBio Collection (via Gbif)
• Longino J. et al. ADMAC project. Accessed on March 24th 2017 at https://sites.google.com/site/admacsite/
• Longino, J.T. 2003. The Crematogaster (Hymenoptera, Formicidae, Myrmicinae) of Costa Rica. Zootaxa 151:1-150
• Wheeler W. M. 1942. Studies of Neotropical ant-plants and their ants. Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoology 90: 1-262.