Cryptopone pauli Fernandes & Delabie, 2019

Fernandes, Io & Delabie, Jhc, 2019, A New Species of Cryptopone Emery (Hymenoptera: Formicidae: Ponerinae) from Brazil with Observations on the Genus and a Key for New Word Species, Sociobiology 66 (3), pp. 408-413 : 409-410

Cryptopone pauli Fernandes & Delabie , new species ( Fig. 1ª- B; 2ª-D )

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Type material: Holotype. BRAZIL, Rondônia, Floresta Nacional do Jamari ( Flona Jamari ), 63°01'24"W 9°09'40"S, Serra da Onça , 29.v.2018, in soil sample, D.C. Castro col., INPA (1 w.) . Paratypes: 3 workers with same data as holotype, deposited in INPA (1 w.), MPEG (1 w.) and CPDC (1 w.) .

Etymology: The species honors the first author’s husband, Paulo Vilela Cruz, who has dedicated his life to studying mayflies, not ants (nobody is perfect!). The name is the genitive form of Paulus, his Latin name.

Diagnosis: Mandibles elongate-triangular, masticatory margin bearing 7 teeth with apical tooth large and acute; clypeus unarmed; petiole rectangular, with anterior margin almost straight in lateral view, its posterior margin straight in dorsal view; body large TL:>7.00 mm.

Measurements: Paratypes (holotype). SL: 0.98-1.02 (1.00), HW: 1.39-1.41 (1.41), HL: 1.39-1.40 (1.39), WL: 1.83-1.85 (1.85), PW: 0.90-0.93 (0.92), PL: 0.47-0.49 (0.49), PH: 0.59-0.67 (0.67), PtL (A3): 0.86-0.95 (0.89); PtL (A4): 0.64-0.68 (0.65); GL: 2.60-2.64 (2.63), TL: 7.05-7.11 (7.10).

Worker description

Head and mesosoma punctate, mesopleuron and propodeum punctate-reticulate in lateral view. Mandible smooth and shining in dorsal surface (frontal view) with scattered punctures. Antennae and legs overall punctate. Propodeum punctate and shining in dorsal view; declivious (posterior) face of propodeum, petiolar dorsum and posterior face shining. Petiole punctate and shining, gaster shining and sparsely foveolate in dorsal view.

Body covered with dense pubescence which does not hide sculpturing, pubescence sparse on propodeal dorsum; body brown. Long suberect golden hairs on the occipital margin and ventral face of head. Four long suberect, golden hairs present on anteromedian clypeal margin. Mandible (dorsal surface) covered with sparse short golden hairs and ventral face with sparse long suberect hairs. Antennae and legs with dense pubescence. Inner surface of protibia with spiniform setae mixed with finer long pilosity. Surfaces of mesotibia with spiniform setae mixed with finer long pilosity. Protarsus, mesotarsus, and metatarsus with spiniform setae mixed with finer long pilosity ( Fig. 2B-D ).

Head subrectangular head in dorsal view, slightly longer than broad, broadened posteriorly, sides convex; frontovertexal margin shallowly concave. Mandible elongatetriangular; bearing 7 teeth along masticatory margin; diastema between apical tooth (at) and tooth II (t2) ( Fig 2A ); basal portion of mandible with distinct oval fovea dorsolaterally. Scape barely reaching posterior margin of head; frontal lobes small and closely approximated. Eye rudimentary, with 6–7 facets, placed at level of antennal torulus. Anterior margin of clypeus convex in frontal view.

Pronotum in dorsal view with dorsal and lateral faces meeting at blunt angle. Mesonotum approximately half as big as pronotum; promesonotal suture distinct; mesometanotal suture feeble; mesopleuron separated from mesonotum by notopleural suture; anapleural sulcus weakly impressed between katepisternum and anepisternum. Propodeum with strong constriction between mesonotum, distinctly narrower than mesonotum; propodeum in dorsal view much narrower than mesonotum, its lateral margins slightly diverge posteriorly; propodeum in lateral view slightly depressed below level of mesonotum, forming rounded angle with oblique, evenly convex declivity; metanotal spiracle covered by distinct mesepimeral lobe; propodeal spiracle round, situated close to metapleural gland. Protibial apex with one pectinate spur and one simple spur; mesotibial apex with one simple spur and one barbulate spur; metatibial with two spurs, one barbulate and one simple.

Petiole in profile robustlysubrectangular, narrowed toward apex, anterior margin slightly straight, posterior margin slightly straight in dorsal and lateral views; petiolar node in dorsal view trapezoid, node summit rounded in anterior view; subpetiolar process forming reduced keel with inconspicuous teeth.

Gaster mostly cylindrical, segments gently curving ventrally, abdominal tergite 3 in lateral view with anterior margin weakly convex raising almost vertically; pre- and postsclerites of A4 separated by distinct constriction; prora absent; sting long, sharp, and upcurved.

Queen and Male: Unknown

Distribution. Brazil (Rondônia).

Other material observed for this study (all in CPDC):

Figures

Fig 1. Cryptopone pauli sp. nov. (A) Lateral view and (B) Dorsal view.

Fig 2. Cryptopone pauli sp. nov. (A), Mandible with seven teeth along masticatory margin and diastema between the apical tooth (at) and tooth II (t2) (Fig 2A) (front-lateral view); (B) Legs in front-lateral view, note spiniform setae on mesotibia; (C) Mesotibia and metatibia in front-lateral view; (D) Metatibia and mesotibia in posterior view.