Suggested synonyms:
= medialis Wilson 2003
= plebecula Forel 1899
Formicidae, Hymenoptera, Insecta, Arthropoda, Animalia
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Identification
Minor worker: head length 0.62mm, head width 0.53mm, scape length 0.68mm, Webers length 0.74mm (n=1). Head without vertex collar; promesonotal and metanotal grooves well impressed; propodeal spines moderately long; face and mesosoma uniformly densely foveolate; gastral dorsum foveolate anteriorly, fading to smooth and shiny posteriorly; erect setae short, stiff, golden; a pair of conspicuous setae on face, none on mesosoma, sparse setae on gastral dorsum; color light orange-brown.
Major worker: head length 1.01mm, head width 0.97mm, scape length 0.69mm (n=1); face and mesosoma uniformly densely foveolate; hypostomal margin flat with pair of widely-spaced teeth, each tooth sharp and needle-like, located near small recessed teeth flanking mandibles; sides of head without erect setae; face and gastral dorsum with sparse, stiff, erect setae, none on mesosoma.
Range
Widespread in Neotropics, including Jamaica and parts of Lesser Antilles. Costa Rica: Pacific lowlands and central valley.
Natural History
This species occurs in open, recently disturbed habitats. Nests are beneath dead wood on the ground. Workers forage on the ground and in low vegetation.
Selected Records
La Pita (120m along road to Monteverde): on roadside vegetation.
Corcovado National Park (Sirena): second growth veg.; nest beneath a board on the ground.
Corcovado National Park (Sirena): grassy habitat; minors and majors recruited to dead Heliconius hewitsoni on ground.
5km E Tres Rios, El Alto de Ochomogo [types of Wilson's medialis].
Comments
The type locality of Forel's plebecula is Alajuela. He described it as being very similar to radoszkowskii var. acuta, which Wilson (2003) synonymized with radoszkowskii. Wilson was not able to locate the type of plebecula.
Literature Cited
Wilson, E. O. 2003. Pheidole in the New World: A Dominant, Hyperdiverse Ant Genus. Harvard University Press, Cambridge, Mass
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
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