Revision of the ant genus Iridomyrmex (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) 2845
Author
Heterick, Brian E.
Author
Shattuck, Steve
text
Zootaxa
2011
2011-04-29
2845
1
1
174
https://www.biotaxa.org/Zootaxa/article/view/zootaxa.2845.1.1
journal article
10.11646/zootaxa.2845.1.1
11755334
5287811
1FDB8D69-7200-4603-9677-930D01E813B5
Iridomyrmex bicknelli luteus
Forel
,
species inquirenda
Iridomyrmex bicknelli lutea
Forel, 1915: 77
.
Types.
Holotype
worker from
Kimberley district
,
Western Australia
(not located during this study, apparently lost).
Comments:
Treatment of
I. bicknelli luteus
is complicated by the apparent loss of the
holotype
combined with an original description consisting of the single sentence (translated from German) “Completely bright red-yellow, otherwise completely like [
bicknelli
]; the head in the back somewhat less convex”. Unfortunately, we are unaware of any species that is similar to
I. bicknelli
but is bright red-yellow and occurs in northern
Western Australia
.
Iridomyrmex bicknelli
itself is brown to black in colour and even callow or faded workers would not be described as bright red-yellow, normally being pale yellow. The description is suggestive of the pale form of
I. agilis
, but this taxon does not occur near the reported type locality of
I. luteus
. A more likely candidate would be the bright-red, narrow headed form of
I. minor
, a very common species in northern
Western Australia
which has a less convex posterior margin of the head when compared to
I. bicknelli
. However, without the type and with little more than a vague one line description it is impossible to determine, with any confidence, the true identity of this taxon. We therefore treat this name as
species inquirenda
within
Iridomyrmex
until the lost
holotype
can be located.