Key to Pheidole of the southwestern Australian Botanical Province

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This worker key is based on: Heterick, B. E. 2009. A guide to the ants of South-western Australia. Records of the Western Australian Museum, Supplement 76: 1-206. Part 2.

There is a key to Majors and Minors.

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Major workers

(n.b. The major worker for Pheidole JDM 871 is not known.)

1

  • Viewed in profile, junction of postpetiole with gaster narrow (Figure 648) . . . . . Pheidole megacephala
Figure 648.
  • Viewed in profile, junction of postpetiole with gaster broad (Figure 649) . . . . . 2
Figure 649.

2

return to couplet #1

  • Viewed from above, vertex of head smooth and shining (Figure 650) . . . . . 3
Figure 650.
  • Viewed from above, vertex of head reticulate (Figure 651) or striate (Figure 652) . . . . . 7
Figure 651.
Figure 652.

3

return to couplet #2

  • Mesosoma almost devoid of sculpture, smooth and shining. . . . . Pheidole sp. JDM 874
  • Mesosoma sculptured, with striae, at least, on promesonotum . . . . . 4

4

return to couplet #3

5

return to couplet #4

  • Viewed from front, mandible quadrate, inner to outer surface (i.e. top to bottom) being about same length as angle to edge (i.e. from left to right) (Figure 653) . . . . . Pheidole hartmeyeri
Figure 653.
  • Viewed from front, mandible relatively elongate, distance from inner to outer surface being much less than distance from angle to edge (Figure 654) . . . . . Pheidole sp. JDM 558
Figure 654.

6

return to couplet #4

  • Medium-sized species (HW ≈ 1.5 mm) (mainly coastal) . . . . . Pheidole ampla
  • Small species (HW ≈ 1 mm) (found in N, NW) . . . . . Pheidole sp. JDM 338

7

return to couplet #2

  • Occipital lobes with strong, deep, reticulate sculpture (Figure 655) . . . . . Pheidole sp. JDM 164
Figure 655.
  • Occipital lobes striate, often weakly so (e.g. Figure 656) . . . . . 8
Figure 656.

8

return to couplet #7

  • Viewed from front, longitudinal striae on head reaching to vertex (Figure 657) . . . . . Pheidole teneriffana
Figure 657.
  • Viewed from front, longitudinal striae diverging strongly left and right near occipital lobes to become more-or-less horizontal (Figure 658) . . . . . 9
Figure 658.

9

return to couplet #8

  • Antennal scrobe long, reaching to at least midpoint of head; head elongate, about 1.5–2 times as long as wide (Figure 659) (size of major very variable, according to locality) . . . . . Pheidole sp. near variabilis Mayr (JDM 177)
Figure 659.
  • Antennal scrobe short, reaching to about midpoint of eye; head only slightly longer than wide (Figure 660) . . . . . 10
Figure 660.

10

return to couplet #9

  • Eye oblique, distinctly attenuated anteriad (Figure 661a); anterolateral and anteromedial teeth on underside of head well-developed (Figure 661b) . . . . . Pheidole bos
Figure 661a.
Figure 661b.
  • Eye variable in shape but not distinctly attenuated anteriad (e.g. Figure 662a); anterolateral and anteromedial teeth on underside of head vestigial (Figure 662b) . . . . . Pheidole sp. JDM 1138
Figure 662a.
Figure 662b.


Minor workers

1mi

  • Propodeum unarmed or with vestigial denticles . . . . . Pheidole sp. JDM 874

2mi

return to couplet #1mi

  • Postpetiole large and rather elongate, distinctly constricted towards its junction with gaster (Figure 663) . . . . . 3 mi
Figure 663.
  • Postpetiole small and compact (about as high as long), not constricted towards its junction with gaster (Figure 664) . . . . . 4 mi
Figure 664.

3mi

return to couplet #2mi

Figure 665.
Figure 666.

4mi

return to couplet #2mi

  • Eye markedly elongate anteriad, separated from mandibular insertion by much less than its own length (Figure 667) . . . . . Pheidole sp. JDM 164
Figure 667.
  • Eye more-or-less ovate, only slightly elongate anteriad, separated from mandibular insertion by at least its own length (Figure 668) . . . . . 5 mi
Figure 668.

5mi

return to couplet #4mi

  • Sculpture of vertex of head and dorsum of promesonotum with distinct, large reticulations, otherwise smooth and shining . . . . . Pheidole sp. JDM 558
  • Sculpture of ver tex of head usually longitudinally striate, striate-shagreenate or lacking; dorsum of promesonotum lacking large reticulations . . . . . 6 mi

6mi

return to couplet #5mi

  • Bright yellow species; frons of head capsule smooth and shining and longitudinal striae virtually absent past level of eye and frons not shagreenate . . . . . Pheidole sp. JDM 338
  • Species usually darker with fine but distinct longitudinal striae; if light in colour then frons of head capsule shagreenate . . . . . 7 mi

7mi

return to couplet #6mi

  • Colour dark chocolate; promesonotum completely shagreenate without shining patches or obvious striae . . . . . Pheidole sp. JDM 871
  • Either colour lighter, or promesonotum with striae or shining patches . . . . . 8

8mi

return to couplet #7mi

  • Small species (HW ≈ 0.5 mm) . . . . . Pheidole sp. near variabilis Mayr (JDM 177)

9mi

return to couplet #8mi

  • Mesosoma yellowish, head and gaster light brown . . . . . Pheidole ampla
  • Species brown, reddish brown with darker head and gaster, or chocolate . . . . . 10 mi

10mi

return to couplet #10mi

  • Scapes very long, exceeding vertex of head by about a third of their length, extensive shagreenate sculpture on mesosoma (Figure 669) . . . . . Pheidole hartmeyeri
Figure 669.
  • Scapes much shorter, barely exceeding vertex of head; shagreenate sculpture less extensive on mesosoma, especially promesonotum (Figure 670) . . . . . 11 mi
Figure 670.

11mi

return to couplet #11mi

  • Eye oblique, smaller (eye width 0.25 < length of side of head capsule) (Figure 671) . . . . . Pheidole bos
Figure 671.
  • Eye positioned along midline of head capsule, larger (eye width ≈ 1/3 length of side of head capsule) (Figure 672) . . . . . Pheidole sp. JDM 1138
Figure 672.