Cryptopone, , Emery, 1893

Schmidt, C. A. & Shattuck, S. O., 2014, The Higher Classification of the Ant Subfamily Ponerinae (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), with a Review of Ponerine Ecology and Behavior, Zootaxa 3817 (1), pp. 1-242 : 185-186

Species of Cryptopone

As discussed by Bolton & Fisher (2011), C. hartwigi is the only species of Cryptopone found in tropical Africa. It possesses a basal mandibular pit and metatibial pusher setae, characteristics of Cryptopone , and fits the diagnosis for this genus as proposed in the present work. However, recently P.S. Ward (pers. comm.) examined a number of ponerine species using molecular methods and found that C. hartwigi is closely related to Fisheropone and only distantly related to C. gilva and C. testacea , suggesting that C. hartwigi is not a true Cryptopone and the observed similarity is due to convergence in the characters they apparently share. Unfortunately, it proved challenging to find morphological characters that would separate C. hartwigi from “true” Cryptopone . Without such characters it is impossible to determine if only C. hartwigi should be removed from Cryptopone , or if other species are also misplaced and in need of transfer to other genera (new or existing). Only a detailed study of the genus will determine the true relationships among these species. Until this can be completed we are taking a conservative approach and placing C. hartwigi within Cryptopone , acknowledging that this placement will likely need emendation as our understanding of the group improves.

C. arabica Collingwood & Agosti, 1996 : Yemen (comb. rev.)

C. butteli Forel, 1913 : Indonesia (Sumatra) (comb. rev.)

C. crassicornis (Emery, 1897) : New Guinea (comb. rev.)

C. fusciceps Emery, 1900 : New Guinea (comb. rev.)

C. gigas Wu & Wang, 1995 : China (comb. rev.)

C. gilva (Roger, 1863) : United States (comb. rev.)

C. guianensis ( Weber, 1939) : Guiana (comb. nov.)

C. hartwigi Arnold, 1948 : South Africa (comb. rev.)

C. holmgreni (Wheeler, 1925) : Peru (comb. nov.)

C. jinxiuensis Zhou, 2001 : China (comb. rev.)

C. mirabilis ( Mackay & Mackay, 2010) : Bolivia (comb. nov.)

C. motschulskyi Donisthorpe, 1943 : New Guinea (comb. rev.)

C. nicobarensis Forel, 1905 : Nicobar Islands (comb. rev.)

C. ochracea (Mayr, 1855) : Italy (comb. rev.)

C. ochracea sicula ( Emery, 1909) : Italy (comb. rev.)

C. pseudogigas Zhou & Zheng, 1997 : China (comb. rev.)

C. recticlypea Xu, 1998 : China (comb. rev.)

C. rotundiceps (Emery, 1914) : New Caledonia (comb. rev.)

C. sauteri (Wheeler, W.M., 1906) : Japan (comb. rev.)

C. sinensis Wang, 1992 : China (comb. rev.)

C. subterranea (Bharti & Wachkoo, 2013) : India (comb. rev.)

C. taivanae (Forel, 1913) : Taiwan (comb. rev.)

C. tengu Terayama, 1999 : Japan (comb. rev.)

C. testacea Emery, 1893 : Sri Lanka (comb. rev.)

C. typhlos (Karavaiev, 1935) : Vietnam (comb. rev.)