Pheidole cardinalis ^HNS new species

Types Mus. Comp. Zool. Harvard.

Etymology L cardinalis ^HNS, red.

diagnosis A member of the fallax ^HNS group, closest to caribbaea ^HNS, kukrana ^HNS, mantilla ^HNS, obscurior ^HNS, and rubiceps ^HNS (also scan alienata ^HNS, fallax ^HNS, jelskii ^HNS, laniger ^HNS, lattkei ^HNS, lovejoyi, petrensis ^HNS, puttemansi ^HNS, roushae ^HNS, susannae ^HNS, tobini ^HNS), distinguished by the following combination of traits.

Major: brownish red, with yellow appendages; pilosity of posterior dorsal profde of head a mix of dense, uniform, medium-length semierect hairs and sparse, much longer erect hairs; occiput, frontal lobes, and vertex carinulate; area between eye and vertex rugoreticulate; the tip of the antennal scape comes to within a distance equal to the maximum scape width of the occipital border; shagreened and opaque.

Minor: nuchal collar present; propodeal spines reduced to denticles.

Measurements (mm) Holotype major: HW 1.40, HL 1.50, SL 1.04, EL 0.22, PW 0.66.

Paratype minor: HW 0.52, HL 0.74, SL 0.94, EL 0.14, PW 0.66.

color Major: body medium brownish red ("brick red") except for genae anterior to eyes, which, along with the appendages, are reddish yellow.

Minor: body concolorous light brown; appendages yellowish brown.

range Known only from the type locality.

biology The type colony came from an earthen nest.

Figure Upper: holotype, major. Lower: paratype, minor. BRAZIL: Serra Caraca, Minas Gerais, 1380 m (K. Lenko). Scale bars = 1 mm.