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
Protanilla
Taylor, 1990
Taxonomy.
The genus
Protanilla
is assigned to the tribe
Anomalomyrmini
(
Bolton 1990c
,
2003
). The tribe
Anomalomyrmini
was recently revised, and
Protanilla
was redefined by
Borowiec
et al
(2011)
.
Morphology.
Workers of Vietnamese species have the following features (see also
Bolton 1990c
and
Borowiec
et al.
2011
):
Worker monomorphic; head in full-face view somewhat elongate trapezoidal; preoccipital carina present but weak dorsally and laterally on head; frontal lobe, frontal carina and antennal scrobe absent; antennal sockets in fullface view fully exposed, very close to anterior margin of head, widely separated from each other by clypeal disc; clypeal disc trapezoidal, raised, and flattened or weakly concave medially, margined laterally with a sharp edge running from mandibular insertion to junction with frons; mandibles subtriangular; masticatory margin of mandible with small peg-like teeth; inner surface of mandible with peg-like teeth (modified setae) and thick setae; antenna 12-segmented; eye absent (but intercaste often with reduced eye consisting of a few ommatidia); mesosoma in lateral view with almost straight dorsal outline, or promesonotum feebly raised; promesonotal suture present and flexible; metanotal groove conspicuous dorsally; propodeum unarmed; orifice of propodeal spiracle round, situated relatively low on lateral face of propodeum; propodeal lobe absent; waist consisting of two small segments (petiole and postpetiole) which have clearly differentiated posterior faces; petiole without anterior peduncle; its tergosternal fusion complete, without trace of sutrue; its sternite swollen strongly and forming anteroventral flange; petiolar and postpetiolar spiracles located on the side of anteriormost part of the petiolar and postpetiolar nodes, respectively; postpetiole almost as long as or longer than broad, not distinctly broader than petiole, lacking tergosternal fusion; its sternite swollen strongly; abdominal spiracles V–VII concealed by the posterior margins of the preceding segments; pygidium large, convex across its width, laterally and posteriorly unarmed; sting well developed.
Differentiation.
The worker of
Protanilla
is easily distinguished from that of the other genera known from
Vietnam
by a combination of features: antennal sockets in full-face view fully exposed; clypeal disc trapezoidal, raised and flattened, margined laterally with a sharp edge; inner surface of mandible with peg-like teeth; promesonotal suture present and flexible; waist consisting of two small segments (petiole and postpetiole) which have clearly diffintiated posterior faces.
Vietnamese species (3 spp.).
P.
sp. eg-1 (Tay Yen Tu).
P.
sp. eg-3 (Cat Tien).
P.
sp. eg-4 (Bidoup-Nui Ba).
Bionomics.
Protanilla
spp. usually occur in well-developed forests but sometimes in forest edges. They nest in rotten wood fragments and in soil.