A review of the ant genus Adelomyrmex Emery 1897 (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) in Central America
Author
Longino, John T.
text
Zootaxa
2012
3456
1
35
journal article
10.5281/zenodo.282199
3e327a0c-9af2-4d20-bd5e-80f6e5f2f250
1175-5326
282199
7F5C6597-DCE6-45CA-9DD8-ED64139177E7
Adelomyrmex myops
W.M. Wheeler, 1910
Figure 6
,
7
,
22
Apsychomyrmex
myops
Wheeler, W.M. 1910: 261, fig. 2.
Holotype
worker:
Guatemala
, Livingston, “10.87” (Schwarz and Barber) [USNM
type
No. 13198] (examined). Description of larva:
Wheeler, G.C. & Wheeler, J. 1955
: 29. Description of queen: Fernández, 2003: 25. Combination in
Adelomyrmex
:
Kempf, 1972
: 18
.
Geographic range.
Guatemala
to
Panama
,
Ecuador
(Galapagos).
Biology.
Most records reveal
A. myops
to be a lowland species but with less habitat specificity than other
Adelomyrmex
. It occurs in mature forest of varying seasonality, from aseasonal wet forest to strongly seasonal dry forest. It also has been collected in disturbed habitats, including a cacao plantation in
Honduras
. There is a record from the Galapagos Islands, where it is probably introduced (
Herrera & Longino 2008
). It can be locally abundant, occurring in up to 20% of quantitative miniWinkler samples. The great majority of records are from
600 m
elevation or lower, but an anomalous site is Cerro Musún in
Nicaragua
.
Adelomyrmex myops
occurred in Winkler samples from
1000–1100 m
, but not in quantitative Winkler sampling around
700 m
.
Comments.
Fernández (2008) had a broad concept of
A. myops
and recognized the likelihood that it would resolve into multiple species. Additional material has proven him correct, and some of the variants discussed by him are here recognized as separate newly-described species.
In some cases, the dorsal promesonotal rugae of workers are somewhat longitudinally oriented, blurring the distinction between
A. myops
,
A. tristani
, and
A
.
paratristani
. The dorsal rugae are never strongly linear, like most collections of
A. tristani
and
A
.
paratristani
. Nearly all
A. tristani
have strongly linear dorsal rugae, but there is more variation in
A
.
paratristani
, where some workers have strongly vermiculate rugae, approaching the condition of some
A. myops
workers. In other words,
A. myops
occupies the range of variation from completely reticulate rugose to strongly vermiculate rugose with some longitudinal orientation, while
A
.
paratristani
ranges from the latter condition to having completely linear, parallel, longitudinal rugae.
Adelomyrmex myops
has dorsal pilosity more like
A. tristani
than
A
.
paratristani
. This is most evident on the gaster, where
A
.
paratristani
usually has sparse, long, erect setae, with very reduced presence of more decumbent setae beneath them, while
A. myops
has a denser brush of erect and subdecumbent setae.
Queens of
A. myops
have an abrupt transition from longitudinal rugae on the mesonotum to coarse, reticulate rugosity on the scutellum. In
A. tristani
and
A
.
paratristani
, the scutellum has longitudinal, subparallel rugae.