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Pheidole amazonica
| Pheidole amazonica | |
|---|---|
| |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Hymenoptera |
| Family: | Formicidae |
| Subfamily: | Myrmicinae |
| Tribe: | Attini |
| Genus: | Pheidole |
| Species: | P. amazonica |
| Binomial name | |
| Pheidole amazonica Wilson, 2003
| |
At the type locality in Peru, Stefan Cover (unpublished collection notes) found amazonica to be apparently the most abundant of all Pheidole species, ranging from terra firme forest into seasonally flooded forest and nesting in rotten sticks or branches on the forest floor. Colonies contained several hundred workers and a single queen. No seed caches were found in any of the 21 nests dissected. (Wilson 2003)
Identification
See the description in the nomenclature section.
Keys including this Species
Distribution
Known from the type locality and near Tena, Napo, Ecuador, 600 m. (Wilson 2003)
Latitudinal Distribution Pattern
Latitudinal Range: -0.6258° to -12.497473°.
| North Temperate |
North Subtropical |
Tropical | South Subtropical |
South Temperate |
- Source: AntMaps
Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists
Neotropical Region: Ecuador, Peru (type locality).
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. |
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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
Terra firme forest into seasonally flooded forest.
Biology
Castes
Worker
Minor
Images from AntWeb
    
| |
| Not Provided. Worker. Specimen code casent0282041. Photographer Adam Lazarus, uploaded by California Academy of Sciences. | Owned by EPEC. |
Major
Images from AntWeb
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| Not Provided. Worker (major/soldier). Specimen code casent0282933. Photographer Adam Lazarus, uploaded by California Academy of Sciences. | Owned by EPEC. |
Nomenclature
The following information is derived from Barry Bolton's Online Catalogue of the Ants of the World.
- amazonica. Pheidole amazonica Wilson, 2003: 370, figs. (s.w.) PERU.
Unless otherwise noted the text for the remainder of this section is reported from the publication that includes the original description.
Description
A small, brown member of the flavens group most similar to Pheidole flavifrons but also in various traits to Pheidole arhuaca, Pheidole nitidicollis and Pheidole tenerescens, differing from those species and other members of the flavens group by the combination of traits given in the description.
Major: dorsal half of the posterior head surface in profile flat; occipital margin in full-face view deeply and broadly concave; propodeal spines directed to the rear, not vertical to the basal propodeal face; an indistinct, circular brown spot present on vertex; a patch of rugoreticulum present laterad to each antennal fossa.
Minor: propodeal spines directed backward; humerus in dorsal-oblique view denticulate; occiput narrowed but lacking a nuchal collar; postpetiole from above bell-shaped.
MEASUREMENTS (mm) Holotype major: HW 0.78, HL 0.78, SL 0.40, EL 0.08, PW 0.38. Paratype minor: HW 0.42, HL 0.44, SL 0.38, EL 0.08, PW 0.26.
COLOR Major: body medium brown, with dark brown circular spot on vertex, and anterior one-fourth of head capsule dark yellowish brown; appendages dark yellowish brown.
Minor: body mostly medium brown, with sides of pronotum, nodes of petiole and postpetiole, and first gastral tergite light brown; appendages also light brown.
Figure. Upper: holotype, major. Lower: paratype, minor. Scale bars = 1 mm.
Type Material
PERU: Cuzco Amazónico, 15 km northeast of Puerto Maldonado, Madre de Dios, 200 m, col.Stefan Cover and John E. Tobin. Museum of Comparative Zoology
Etymology
L amazonica, a reference to the geographical region of origin.
References
- Wilson, E. O. 2003. Pheidole in the New World: A dominant, hyperdiverse ant genus. Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA. (page 370, fig. major, minor described)
References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics
- Fernández, F. and S. Sendoya. 2004. Lista de las hormigas neotropicales. Biota Colombiana Volume 5, Number 1.
- Mertl A. L., J. F. A. Traniello, K. Ryder Wilkie, and R. Constantino. 2012. Associations of two ecologically significant social insect taxa in the litter of an amazonian rainforest: is there a relationship between ant and termite species richness? Psyche doi:10.1155/2012/312054