Taxonomy in the phylogenomic era: species boundaries and phylogenetic relationships among North American ants of the Crematogaster scutellaris group (Formicidae: Hymenoptera)
Author
Ward, Philip S.
Author
Blaimer, Bonnie B.
text
Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society
2022
194
893
937
journal article
10.1093/zoolinnean/zlab047
0024-4082
10115063
6144DD31-0F7B-4589-86A3-F40994452C9
CREMATOGASTER MARIONI
BUREN, 1968
,
STAT. REV.
(
FIG. 26
)
Crematogaster marioni
Buren, 1968
b: 105
.
Holotype
worker,
Morena Lake
,
San Diego Co.
,
California
(
W. F. Buren
) (LACM) (examined).
Junior synonym of
C. emeryana
:
Morgan & Mackay, 2017: 171
; here overturned.
Worker measurements (
N
= 18):
HW 0.72–1.05, HL 0.71–0.98, SL 0.56–0.73, WL 0.81–1.14, MtFL 0.60– 0.82, MSC 4–15, A4SC 19–38, PP-SL/HW 0.08–0.14, CI 1.01–1.09, OI 0.24–0.28, SI 0.69–0.80, MtFL/HW 0.78–0.89, SPL/HW 0.16–0.23, SPTD/HW 0.43–0.56.
Discussion:
Crematogaster emeryana
and
C. marioni
exhibit notable differences in morphology, biology and distribution. They also have no close phylogenetic relationship to one another, with
C. marioni
being sister to
C. coarctata
, while
C. emeryana
appears to be a western offshoot of
C. lineolata
(
Fig. 1
). The most noticeable distinctions between the two species are as follows:
• Scape length: shorter in
C. marioni
(SI 0.69–0.80, SL/HL 0.73–0.81, SL/WL 0.64–0.71;
N
= 18), longer in
C. emeryana
(SI 0.82–0.89, SL/HL 0.84–0.90, SL/ WL 0.74–0.79;
N
= 12) (
Fig. 46
).
• Conspicuous striae on lower mesopleuron: usually present in
C. marioni
, absent in
C. emeryana
.
• Standing pilosity on gaster: common in
C. marioni
(A4SC 19–38), sparser in
C. emeryana
(A4SC 8–16).
• Nesting habits: arboreal (
C. marioni
) vs. grounddwelling (
C. emeryana
).
Distribution and biology:
Crematogaster marioni
is endemic to the
California
floristic province and occurs from northern
California
to northern
Baja California
. It has been recorded from a variety of low- to mediumelevation habitats, including oak woodland, riparian woodland,
Quercus–Pinus–Pseudotsuga
forest, pine forest/woodland, chaparral and coastal scrub. Nest site records include oak galls; dead branches of
Arctostaphylos
,
Baccharis
,
Pinus
and
Quercus
and rotten pine logs.