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Pseudomyrmex salvini
| Pseudomyrmex salvini | |
|---|---|
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| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Hymenoptera |
| Family: | Formicidae |
| Subfamily: | Pseudomyrmecinae |
| Genus: | Pseudomyrmex |
| Species group: | elongatulus |
| Species: | P. salvini |
| Binomial name | |
| Pseudomyrmex salvini (Forel, 1899)
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This species is confined to southeastern Mexico, Guatemala, Belize, and Honduras, where it occurs in or at the edge of mesic forest, at elevations ranging from 10 m to 990 m (mean 316 m; n = 35). One worker, from Pico Pijol, Honduras (leg. C. Hansson) (MZLU), has the elevation given as ‘2200 m’, but this is likely to be an error. Habitats recorded on specimen labels include littoral vegetation, rainforest, rainforest edge, mesophil forest, and roadside. Among the material examined by us, there were only four explicit nest series: ‘ex dead twig of liana’, ‘ex dead weed stalk’, ‘ex dead twig’, and ‘nest in twig’. Most collections consist of workers or dealate queens foraging on low vegetation. At Los Tuxtlas, Veracruz one of us (P.S.Ward) observed a salticid spider, apparently the dark cephalic morph of Synemosyna decipiens (Cambridge) (see Cutler 1985: 87), mimicking workers of P. salvini. (Ward & Branstetter, 2022)
Identification
Relatively large species (HW 1.12–1.21, LHT 0.96–1.12) with broad head and large eyes (see REL and REL2 values); frontal carinae separated by less than basal scape width; pronotum laterally submarginate, flattened, and with a weak longitudinal median depression; metanotal groove obsolete to absent; in profile propodeum short and high, the dorsal face shorter than, and rounding insensibly into, the declivitous face; petiole elongate and gracile, with a well differentiated anterior peduncle (Fig. 17) (PLI 0.43–0.49, PL/HL 0.64–0.69); profemur slender; hind leg relatively long (LHT/HL 0.80–0.84). Head varying from sublucid to (in more southern populations) subopaque; anterior half of head between eyes densely punctulate-coriarious, punctures becoming sparser on posterior half (separated by more than their diameters), and with intervening reticulate-coriarious sculpture of varying reflectance. Standing pilosity sparse, confined on the mesosoma dorsum to the pronotum (MSC 2-4). Head dark blackish-brown, remainder of body varying from contrastingly yellow-orange (except for transverse infuscated bands on abdominal tergites 4–6) to medium brown, appendages generally lighter. (Ward & Branstetter, 2022)
Pseudomyrmex salvini is a distinctive species, sister to all other members of the P. elongatulus group (Fig. 1). It is easily recognized by its large size, elongate eyes (more than one-half head length), broad head (worker CI 0.90–0.96, queen CI 0.81–0.84), short high propodeum (in the worker), and elongate petiole with well-developed anterior peduncle (Fig. 17). In populations from Veracruz the head contrasts strikingly with the lighter colored remainder of the body; farther southward and eastward the mesosoma and metasoma become increasingly infuscated and the contrast is muted. (Ward & Branstetter, 2022)
Keys including this Species
Distribution
Latitudinal Distribution Pattern
Latitudinal Range: 18.6417° to 14°.
| North Temperate |
North Subtropical |
Tropical | South Subtropical |
South Temperate |
- Source: AntMaps; Ward & Branstetter, 2022
Distribution based on Regional Taxon Lists
Neotropical Region: Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico (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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Biology
Castes
Images from AntWeb
   
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| Syntype of Pseudomyrmex salvini. Worker. Specimen code casent0902879. Photographer Z. Lieberman, uploaded by California Academy of Sciences. | Owned by NHMUK, London, UK. |
   
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| Syntype of Pseudomyrmex salvini. Worker. Specimen code casent0907554. Photographer Will Ericson, uploaded by California Academy of Sciences. | Owned by MHNG, Geneva, Switzerland. |
Phylogeny
Relationships among Pseudomyrmex elongatulus group species based on Ward & Branstetter (2022).
| Pseudomyrmex |
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Nomenclature
The following information is derived from Barry Bolton's Online Catalogue of the Ants of the World.
- salvini. Pseudomyrma salvini Forel, 1899c: 94, pl. 4, fig. 8 (w.q.m.) MEXICO. Combination in Pseudomyrmex: Kempf, 1960a: 30.
Type Material
- Syntype workers, queens, males, Teapa, Tabasco, Mexico (H. H. Smith) (BMNH, MHNG) [examined by Ward & Branstetter, 2022].
Description
References
- Ahuatzin, D.A., González-Tokman, D., Valenzuela-González, J.E., Escobar, F., Ribeiro, M.C., Acosta, J.C.L., Dáttilo, W. 2021. Sampling bias in multiscale ant diversity responses to landscape composition in a human-disturbed rainforest. Insectes Sociaux (doi:10.1007/s00040-021-00844-2).
- Forel, A. 1899f. Formicidae. [part]. Biol. Cent.-Am. Hym. 3: 81-104 (page 94, pl. 4, fig. 8 worker, queen, male described)
- Kempf, W. W. 1960a. Estudo sôbre Pseudomyrmex I. (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Rev. Bras. Entomol. 9: 5-32 (page 30, Combination in Pseudomyrmex)
- Ward, P.S., Branstetter, M.G. 2022. Species paraphyly and social parasitism: Phylogenomics, morphology, and geography clarify the evolution of the Pseudomyrmex elongatulus group (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), a Mesoamerican ant clade. Insect Systematics and Diversity 6(1), 4: 1-31 (doi:10.1093/isd/ixab025).
References based on Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics
- Ahuatzin D. A., E. J. Corro, A. Aguirre Jaimes, J. E. Valenzuela Gonzalez, R. Machado Feitosa, M. Cezar Ribeiro, J. Carlos Lopez Acosta, R. Coates, W. Dattilo. 2019. Forest cover drives leaf litter ant diversity in primary rainforest remnants within human-modified tropical landscapes. Biodiversity and Conservation 28(5): 1091-1107.
- Branstetter M. G. and L. Sáenz. 2012. Las hormigas (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) de Guatemala. Pp. 221-268 in: Cano E. B. and J. C. Schuster. (eds.) 2012. Biodiversidad de Guatemala. Volumen 2. Guatemala: Universidad del Valle de Guatemala, iv + 328 pp
- Dattilo W. et al. 2019. MEXICO ANTS: incidence and abundance along the Nearctic-Neotropical interface. Ecology https://doi.org/10.1002/ecy.2944
- Del Toro, I., M. Vázquez, W.P. Mackay, P. Rojas and R. Zapata-Mata. Hormigas (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) de Tabasco: explorando la diversidad de la mirmecofauna en las selvas tropicales de baja altitud. Dugesiana 16(1):1-14.
- Fernández, F. and S. Sendoya. 2004. Lista de las hormigas neotropicales. Biota Colombiana Volume 5, Number 1.
- Kempf W. W. 1960. Estudo sôbre Pseudomyrmex I. (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Revista Brasileira de Entomologia 9: 5-32.
- Kempf W. W. 1967. Estudos sôbre Pseudomyrmex. IV (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Revista Brasileira de Entomologia 12: 1-12.
- Kempf, W.W. 1972. Catalago abreviado das formigas da regiao Neotropical (Hym. Formicidae) Studia Entomologica 15(1-4).
- Longino J. T. 2013. Ants of Honduras. Consulted on 18 Jan 2013. https://sites.google.com/site/longinollama/reports/ants-of-honduras
- Longino J. et al. ADMAC project. Accessed on March 24th 2017 at https://sites.google.com/site/admacsite/
- Vieira de Oliveira J. A., D. Martins da Silva, and F. A. Santana. 2014. Ant species diversity in ciliary forest and gallery forest areas in central Brazil. Advances in Entomology 2(1): 24-32.
- Vásquez-Bolaños M. 2011. Lista de especies de hormigas (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) para México. Dugesiana 18: 95-133