Iridomyrmex florissantius

†Iridomyrmex florissantius Temporal range: Late Eocene K Pa Eo Ol Mi Pl ↓ Florissant, Colorado, United States
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Hymenoptera
Family:	Formicidae
Subfamily:	Dolichoderinae
Tribe:	Leptomyrmecini
Genus:	Iridomyrmex
Species:	†I. florissantius
Binomial name
†Iridomyrmex florissantius Carpenter, 1930

This species, based on a series of impression fossil queens, is only tentatively placed in Iridomyrmex as very little morphological detail is available. It is unlikely that this species is related to modern Iridomyrmex, but so little information is available that it is extremely difficult to determine its true relationships. As such it is retained in Iridomyrmex as incertae sedis with strong reservations that it actually belongs here.

Distribution

This taxon was described from the Florissant, Colorado, United States (Late Eocene).

Nomenclature

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

• †florissantius. †Iridomyrmex florissantius Carpenter, 1930: 50, pl. 2, fig. 4; pl. 10, fig. 7 (q.) U.S.A. (Oligocene). Provisionally retained in Iridomyrmex: Shattuck, 1992a: 15. Unidentifiable taxon, incertae sedis in Iridomyrmex: Heterick & Shattuck, 2011: 168.

Type Material

• Holotype, queen, United States (Eocene).

References

• Carpenter, F. M. 1930. The fossil ants of North America. Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoology 70: 1-66. (page 50, pl. 2, fig. 4, pl. 10, fig. 7 queen described)

• Shattuck, S. O. 1992a. Review of the dolichoderine ant genus Iridomyrmex Mayr with descriptions of three new genera (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). J. Aust. Entomol. Soc. 31: 13-18 (page 15, Provisionally retained in Iridomyrmex)