Taxonomy of the ant genus Pheidole Westwood (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in the Afrotropical zoogeographic region: definition of species groups and systematic revision of the Pheidole pulchella group Author FISCHER, GEORG. Systematic Zoology, Zoological Research Museum A. König, Adenaueralle 160, D- 53113 Bonn, Germany georg.fischer@gmx.de Author GARCIA, FRANCISCO HITA Entomology, California Academy of Sciences, 55 Music Concourse Drive, San Francisco, CA 94118, U. S. A. Author PETERS, MARCELL K. Department of Animal Ecology and Tropical Biology, Biocenter, University of Würzburg, D- 97074 Würzburg, Germany text Zootaxa 2012 2012-03-13 3232 1 1 43 http://dx.doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.3232.1.1 journal article 45253 10.11646/zootaxa.3232.1.1 e51f5db9-0fae-41c9-97c3-f5cee298cc0d 1175-5326 280354 P. speculifera group: Medium to large species (minor worker HW: 0.52–0.81 mm , n=26), the minor workers characterized by large relatively long appendages (SI: 111–123), and both worker subcastes with large postpetiole that is 2–3 times wider than long. Minor workers: long antennal scapes, surpassing the posterior head margin by about ¼ of their length. Posterior head margin compressed, weakly rounded [ prelli complex] to evenly rounded [ crassinoda , speculifera ]. Postpetiole large and voluminous, as long as [ prelli complex] or longer [ crassinoda , speculifera ] than petiole and more than twice as wide. Pilosity moderately abundant, either short and stout, with blunt or split apices [ crassinoda , prelli ] or longer and flexous [ speculifera ]. Major workers: head either massive and thick, with sculpture variable, frontal carinae & antennal scrobes absent, inner hypostomal teeth strongly reduced and median tooth absent [ speculifera complex] or head less massive, with strong longitudinal and transverse rugose-punctate sculpture, long, curved and broadly extended frontal carinae, inner hypostomal teeth and median tooth present and conspicuous [ prelli complex]. Spines thick and short, almost lobate. Postpetiole very massive, in dorsal view about 2–3 times wider than petiole, with a conspicuously spiked lateral process. The group can be subdivided into prelli complex and speculifera complex, the former with slightly smaller species (minor worker HW: 0.52–0.56 mm , n=5), which possess relatively large eyes (EI: 31–33) ( Pheidole caffra Emery , P. caffra abyssinica Forel , P. caffra amoena Forel , P. caffra bayeri Forel , P. caffra montivaga Santschi , P. caffra senilifrons Wheeler , P. prelli Forel, P. p re l l i ingenita Santschi, P. prelli redbankensis Forel ). The speculifera complex includes slightly to considerably larger species (minor worker HW: 0.60–0.81 mm , n=21) with smaller eyes (EI: 22–28) ( P. crassinoda Emery, P. crassinoda pluto Arnold, P. crassinoda ruspolii Emery , P. crassinoda sordidula Santschi , P. occipitalis André , P. occipitalis adami Santschi , P. occipitalis neutralis Santschi , P. speculifera Emery, P. s p e c u l i f e r a ascara Emery, P. speculifera bispecula Santschi, P. s p ec u li fe r a cubangensis Forel). New material and undescribed species from different localities can be found in the collections of BMNH, CASC and ZFMK.