Formicidae, Hymenoptera, Insecta, Arthropoda, Animalia
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Additional images: queen, face view (small, large); lateral view (small, large); mandible (large).
Range
Costa Rica: throughout the country in mid to low elevation wet forest.
Identification
Size small; color black and shining; petiolar node subtriangular, not thin and scale-like; eyes with 2-3 ommatidia. This species is easy to confuse with small workers of S. picea. The petiolar node of S. picea is narrower, more scale-like. Also, workers of S. picea usually have eyes with 5 or more ommatidia.
Natural History
This species occurs in wet to moist forest habitats. On the Barva transect in Braulio Carrillo National Park, it is very common from La Selva to 500m elevation, but declines to absence by 1000m. Workers are common in Winkler samples of sifted leaf litter. Workers occasionally come to baits on the forest floor. Nests have been found in small rotten sticks in the leaf litter and in sticks lodged in low vegetation.
Page author:
John T. Longino, The Evergreen State College, Olympia WA 98505 USA.longinoj@evergreen.edu
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