Formicidae, Hymenoptera, Insecta, Arthropoda, Animalia
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Image catalog (click here). Includes images of holotype.
Range
Panama, Venezuela, Amazonian Brazil.
Identification
The presence of one or two extremely long flexuous setae on the hind tibia (much longer than the underlying suberect pilosity) is unique to two species, sumichrasti and flavosensitiva. The propodeal spines are upturned in sumichrasti, directed posteriorly in flavosensitiva.
Description of worker
Color yellow orange; workers monomorphic in size.
Mandibles feebly striate on proximal half, smooth and shining with large piligerous puncta on distal half; clypeus with two longitudinal carinulae at anterior margin, anterior margin convex; head about as long as wide, subcircular; antenna with terminal two segments enlarged to form a club; scapes with abundant long erect setae, longest setae longer than twice maximum width of scape; when scapes laid back from antennal insertions, they distinctly surpass margin of vertex; face smooth and shining; face covered with abundant long flexuous white to amber setae, most setae about 0.10mm long, a few twice as long on some specimens, no appressed pubescence; in face view abundant setae project from lateral and posterior margins.
Dorsal profile of mesosoma forming unbroken, shallowly convex surface from anterior pronotum to propodeal spines, then curving down to petiolar insertion; propodeal suture moderately impressed in dorsal view but obscured in profile due to lateral carinulae that bridge the suture; propodeum with short, weakly differentiated dorsal face and long posterior face; propodeal spines medium length, spiniform, posteriorly directed, weakly curving upward; pronotal dorsum with longitudinal carinulae and a few transverse carinulae anteriorly, producing incipient clathrate sculpture, interspaces smooth and shining; mesonotum with strong subparallel lateral carinae that extend across propodeal suture onto propodeum; medial mesonotum concave, smooth and shining; dorsal face of propodeum differentiated by weak to moderately developed punctate or punctatorugose sculpture; posterior face flat to concave, smooth and shining; side of pronotum smooth and shining; katepisternum and side of propodeum shining, largely smooth with traces of feeble microareolate sculpture and carinulae; mesosomal dorsum with flexuous white to amber setae, pair of humeral setae very long, to 0.26mm, pair of setae nearly as long on anterolateral mesonotum, other setae shorter, scattered over promesonotum and dorsal face of propodeum; tibiae with abundant long erect setae, of variable length, one or more tibial setae very long, much longer than maximum tibial width.
Petiole in side view trapezoidal, punctate, with acute anteroventral tooth; dorsal face of petiole smooth and shining, rectangular, longer than wide, with about four setae along posterior border; postpetiole with acute anteroventral tooth, postpetiole in dorsal view subquadrate and wider than long, with 6-8 erect setae; fourth abdominal tergite smooth and shining, with abundant long flexuous white to amber setae, no appressed pubescence.
Measurements:
Holotype: HL 0.582, HW 0.619, HC 0.549, SL 0.538, EL 0.161, WL 0.615, SPL 0.152, PTH 0.147, PTL 0.225, PTW 0.173, PPL 0.147, PPW 0.190, CI 106, OI 28, SI 92, PTHI 65, PTWI 77, PPI 129, SPI 25.
Other specimens: HL 0.557, 0.504, 0.532; HW 0.614, 0.537, 0.566; HC 0.540, 0.479, 0.490; SL 0.532, 0.485, 0.504; EL 0.153, 0.137, 0.144; A11L 0.243; A11W 0.100; A10L 0.111; A10W 0.083; A09L 0.057; A09W 0.063; A08L 0.037; A08W 0.051; WL 0.598, 0.509, 0.542; SPL 0.142, 0.126, 0.140; PTH 0.156, 0.116, 0.138; PTL 0.205, 0.181, 0.208; PTW 0.166, 0.143, 0.146; PPL 0.140, 0.122, 0.139; PPW 0.184, 0.161, 0.159; CI 110, 107, 106; OI 27, 27, 27; SI 96, 96, 95; PTHI 76, 64, 66; PTWI 81, 79, 70; PPI 131, 132, 114; SPI 24, 25, 26; ACI 0.66.
Description of Queen
A normal queen (dorsal face of propodeum drops steeply from postscutellum and much of propodeum appears ventral to scutellum and postscutellum) with general shape, sculpture, and pilosity characters of the worker.
Natural History
Crematogaster flavosensitiva occurs in lowland seasonal to wet forest habitats. The few known collections are from Winkler samples of sifted litter from the forest floor or from baits on or near the forest floor. The type series is from a nest that was in a rotten fruit exocarp in the leaf litter.
Comments
Although not known from Costa Rica, this species has been collected numerous times on Barro Colorado Island in Panama. It is related to flavomicrops, minutissima, monteverdensis, sumichrasti, and wardi, sharing with all these (1) yellow coloration; (2) shiny face; (3) abundant erect flexuous setae on face, mesosoma, and tibiae; and (4) subquadrate dorsal face of petiole.
Page author:
John T. Longino, The Evergreen State College, Olympia WA 98505 USA. longinoj@evergreen.edu
Date of this version: 4 March 2003.
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