Formicidae, Hymenoptera, Insecta, Arthropoda, Animalia
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Major dorsal view (reduced, original).
Line drawings of minor worker dorsal view, major worker dorsal view, from Kempf (1952).
Range
Costa Rica to Brazil, Bolivia. Costa Rica: Osa Peninsula, Guanacaste Province (5km S Liberia; Palo Verde).
Identification
Minor worker: eyes situated behind the scrobe, which terminates in front of the eye; lateral border of head convex and upturned above eye, without a rounded excision; lateral margins of mesosoma, including lateral margins of propodeum, with relatively uniform foliaceous crest, which is lighter colored than mesosomal dorsum; petiole with distinct anterior and dorsal faces; propodeal suture distinctly impressed across entire mesosomal dorsum; hind femur with ventral foliaceous crest; color light red brown.
Major worker: eyes situated behind the scrobe, which terminates in front of the eye; head with complete and strongly developed cephalic disk; cephalic disk with arcuate notch anteriorly; in full face view dorsal surface of mandibles visible in notch; surface of cephalic disk orange, coarsely rugose, not smooth and shining.
Natural History
This species appears to be rare in Costa Rica. Andrade and Baroni Urbani (1999) report a collection by Janzen from near Liberia. I have collected it twice, once as stray workers from Palo Verde, and a nest collection from Corcovado (Sirena). The nest was in the high canopy of a Licania tree (Chrysobalanaceae). Much of the crown of this tree was inhabited by an Azteca species, nesting in the live branch tips. But one chamber in a branch tip contained a C. grandinosus nest. The nest contained a few workers and one callow alate queen. There were no Coccoidea inside, in contrast to the Azteca nests which were packed with Coccoidea.
Type Data
Cryptocerus grandinosus F. Smith 1860:76. Type worker: Ega (=Tefe) (Brazil, Amazonas) [BMNH].
Literature Cited
Andrade, M. L. de, and C. Baroni Urbani. 1999. Diversity and adaptation in the ant genus Cephalotes, past and present (Hymenoptera, Formicidae). Stuttgarter Beitrage zur Naturkunde Serie B (Geologie und Palaontologie) 271:1-889.
Kempf, W. W. 1952. A synopsis of the pinelii-complex in the genus Paracryptocerus (Hym. Formicidae). Stud. Entomol. 1:1-30.
Smith, F. 1860. Descriptions of new genera and species of exotic Hymenoptera. J. Entomol. 1:65-84.
Page author:
John T. Longino, The Evergreen State College, Olympia WA 98505 USA.longinoj@evergreen.edu
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