Generic Synopsis of the Formicidae of Vietnam (Insecta: Hymenoptera), Part II — Cerapachyinae, Aenictinae, Dorylinae, Leptanillinae, Amblyoponinae, Ponerinae, Ectatomminae and Proceratiinae
Author
Eguchi, Katsuyuki
Author
Viet, Bui Tuan
Author
Yamane, Seiki
text
Zootaxa
2014
3860
1
1
46
journal article
10.11646/zootaxa.3860.1.1
ceb30f74-c770-4952-859a-9d3a84a5e087
1175-5326
287059
FDFD1014-8DDA-4EED-A385-95FA4F964CFC
Simopone
Forel, 1891
Taxonomy.
The genus
Simopone
is assigned to the tribe
Cerapachyini
together with
Cerapachys
and
Sphinctomyrmex
(
Bolton 2003
)
. Definition of the genus was revised by
Bolton and Fisher (2012)
.
Morphology.
Although no Vietnamese specimens of this genus were examined in the present study, according to
Radchenko (1993b)
and
Bolton & Fisher (2012)
, workers of a known Vietnamese species of this genus (
S. oculata
Radchenko
) may show the following features:
Head in full-face view elongate, with sides almost parallel, without a differentiated vertical posterior surface above occipital foramen (instead vertex slopes evently down to upper margin of occipital foramen); preoccipital carina distinct; frontal lobe not vertically raised, in full-face view concealing at least inner margins of antennal sockets; the lobes relatively widely separated from each other by posteromedian portion of clypeus; frontal carina reaching dorsal margin of eye; parafrontal ridge almost reaching anterior margin of eye; mandible subtriangular, armed with minute teeth on masticatory margin; antenna 11-segmented; scape clavate, short; segment II to apical segment short and gradually incrassate; eye large; ocelli present but minute; mesosoma elongate with its dorsolateral borders right-angled; pronotum marginate anteriorly; promesonotal suture represented by transverse trace dorsally but distinct laterally; metanotal groove poorly visible dorsally but distinct laterally; mesotibia without spurs (at most a setiform vestige may remain that cannot be distinguished by light microscopy from other setae at tibial apex); metatibia with a single pectinate spur; metabasitarsus ventrally with a longitudinal glandular groove that occupies at least basal half of tarsomere length; pretarsal claws of all legs with a single preapical tooth on inner margin; propodeum unarmed, but posterior face margined dorsally and laterally with a distinct ridge; petiole in lateral view elongate and compressed dorsoventrally, with a transverse anterior carina.
Differentiation.
The worker of
Simopone
is similar to that of
Cerapachys
, but in the latter the frontal lobes are very narrowly separated from each other by a longitudinal strip of the median portion of clypeus, the antennal socket is in full-face view almost completely exposed, and one or two tibial spurs are present on middle legs.
Vietnamese species (
1 sp.
).
Simopone oculata
Radchenko, 1993
.
Type
locality: Kondor Island [Con Son I., Ba Ria-Vung Tau Prov.].
Bionomics.
Radchenko (1993b)
mentioned that the
holotype
(worker) of
S. oculata
was collected under a stump in a secondary tropical forest, but the life history of the species is unknown.