AntWeb: Pheidole ajax
Formicidae, Hymenoptera, Insecta, Arthropoda, Animalia
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Distribution
Costa Rica, Colombia.
Identification
Minor worker: head length 0.83mm, head width 0.61mm, scape length 1.18mm, Webers length 1.13mm (n=1). Head elongate, subtrapezoidal behind, with distinct vertex collar; promesonotal and metanotal grooves impressed; posterior border of metanotal groove in the form of a pronounced right-angle step; anepisternum impressed relative to katepisternum; propodeal spines very long; face smooth and shiny; pronotum smooth and shiny; katepisternum and lower side of propodeum reticulate rugose foveolate; anepisternum, mesonotal dorsum, and propodeal dorsum smooth and shiny; gaster smooth and shiny; dorsal pilosity moderately abundant, of moderate length, slightly stiff; color red brown.
Major worker: head length 1.36mm, head width 1.23mm, scape length 1.18mm (n=1). Much of face densely rugose foveolate, becoming striatofoveolate medially and on vertex lobes; hypostomal teeth lacking; recessed teeth flanking mandibles present; face and sides of head covered with long, silky, appressed pubescence; gaster with abundant, long, flexuous setae.
Biology
Habitat: mature and second growth wet forest.
Habits: forages in low arboreal zone; minor workers often collected in Malaise traps and sweep or beating samples, but rarely in Winkler or Berlese samples; occasional at baits; Longino observed a nest under bark of a rotten tree stump.
Comments
The type locality is San Josˇ, Costa Rica.
Page authors:
John T. Longino, The Evergreen State College, Olympia WA 98505 USA. longinoj@evergreen.edu
Stefan Cover, Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard University, Cambridge MA 02138 USA. scover@oeb.harvard.edu
Date of this version: 8 December 2009.
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