Pheidole pampana ^HNS Santschi, new status

Pheidole nitudula st. pampana ^HNS Santschi 1929d: 383. Syn.: Pheidole nitidula st. pampana var. nigrior ^HNS Santschi 1933f: 108, not available (quadrinomial).

Types Naturhist. Mus. Basel.

Etymology Referring to the pampas, the Argentine grasslands where presumably the types were collected.

diagnosis A member of the fallax ^HNS group, similar in various characters to bergi ^HNS, cordiceps ^HNS, eidmanni ^HNS, and nitidula ^HNS, distinguished as follows.

Major: head slightly bicolorous (see Color below); humerus in dorsal-oblique view subangulate; rugoreticulum of head covering a swath between each eye and antennal fossa; carinulae absent from center of vertex, and those to each side reach less than half the distance from eye level to level of occiput; anterior strip of pronotal dorsum carinulate.

Minor: pilosity very long, with some hairs longer than Eye Length; pronotum entirely smooth; occiput narrowed, with convex border, but lacking nuchal collar.

Measurements (mm) Lectotype major: HW 1.40, HL 1.40, SL 0.86, EL 0.22, PW 0.70. Paralectotype minor: HW 0.72, HL 0.76, SL 0.82, EL 0.20, PW 0.46.

Color Major: body concolorous medium reddish brown except for anterior vertex and anterior one-third of head, which is brownish yellow; appendages yellow.

Minor: body plain medium brown, with venter and genae tending to yellowish brown; appendages brownish yellow.

Range Known only from the type locality.

Biology Unknown.

Figure Upper: lectotype, major. Lower: paralectotype, minor. ARGENTINA: Alta Gracia, Cordoba. Scale bars = 1 mm.