A taxonomic revision of the Neotropical myrmicine ant genus Lachnomyrmex Wheeler (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)
Author
Feitosa, Rodrigo M.
Author
Brandão, Carlos Roberto F.
text
Zootaxa
2008
1890
1
49
journal article
10.5281/zenodo.184304
fe0befe7-de27-4b06-b1ea-0f7f79b6b024
1175-5326
184304
Lachnomyrmex lattkei
Feitosa & Brandão
,
new species
Figures 7
,
18
Holotype
worker.
VENEZUELA
: Falcón
: Petit, cia. La Maletta, Haitoncito,
3.vii.1982
, J. Lattke col., no. 275, specimen code CASENT0173879 [
MIZA
].
Worker diagnosis.
Body covered by fine, relatively sparse, and partially regular rugulation; promesonotum elevated well above propodeum level, in profile; metanotal groove impressed; propodeal spines straight and thin; teeth of propodeal lobes well developed; surface of first gastral tergite entirely devoid of long hairs.
Holotype
measurements.
HL 0.76; HW 0.72; ML 0.25; SL 0.49; EL 0.16; WL 0.85; PSL 0.21; PL 0.22- 0.39; PPL 0.17; GL 0.99; TL 3.40; CI 96; SI 67; OI 22.
Worker description.
Color dark ferruginous, with appendages lighter. Head and mesosoma finely covered by vermiculate and predominantly longitudinal rugae, transverse on anterior portion of pronotum, grading to longitudinal on rest of promesonotum; mesopleura and lateral surfaces of propodeum sparsely covered by irregular rugae; mandibles with few and short longitudinal striae restricted to basal portion; petiole and postpetiole irregularly rugose. Abundant pilosity on head, dorsum of promesonotum and waist; dorsum of petiolar node and postpetiole each with more than 10 long hairs; first tergite of gaster entirely devoid of long flexuous hairs.
Head longer than broad, with vertexal margin gently convex; frontal lobes subquadrate; eyes with about seven facets at greatest diameter. Promesonotum considerably convex in profile, well above propodeum level; metanotal groove relatively broad and deeply impressed; propodeal spines straight and thin; teeth of propodeal lobes well developed, swollen basally, and with little less than the half-length of propodeal spines. Petiolar node only weakly elevated and rounded dorsally, in lateral view; dorsum of postpetiole slightly convex and without a well definite anteroventral projection.
Gyne.
Unknown.
Etymology.
Species named after its collector, the prominent myrmecologist Dr. John E. Lattke, curator of the MIZA ant collection.
Comments.
This species can hardly be confounded with any other in the genus given the body sculpturation pattern and the combination of elevated promesonotum, and the absence of long hairs on the dorsal surface of first gastral tergite.
Lachnomyrmex lattkei
is one of the two species in the genus known only from the
holotype
. The specimen was collected in a leaf litter sample submitted to the Berlese funnel from an
1180m
elevation forest in northern
Venezuela
.