Lasius bombycina Seifert & Galkowski 2016

Seifert, Bernhard, 2020, A taxonomic revision of the Palaearctic members of the subgenus Lasius s. str. (Hymenoptera, Formicidae), Soil Organisms 92 (1), pp. 15-86 : 58-60

4.4.18 Lasius bombycina Seifert & Galkowski 2016

Lasius bombycina Seifert & Galkowski 2016

[type investigation]

Type material: Holotype plus four paratype workers labelled ”TUR: 38.63°N, 34.91°E, 1060 m, Capadoce: Ürgüp, SSE-facing meadow, S. Aron 1990“, depository SMN Görlitz. Three paratype workers labelled ”Türkei_26, Prov. Kayseri, Ziyarettepesi Gecidi (ca. 130 km E. Kayseri), 1900mH, 09.05.1997, Leg. A.Schulz, K. Vock, M. Sanetra 01“; depository: NHM Wien.

All material examined. A total of 20 nest samples with 53 workers were subject to NUMOBAT investigation. These originated from Austria (4 samples), Bulgaria (1), Greece (1), Hungary (4), Slovakia (1) and Turkey (9). For details see supplementary information S1.

Geographic range. Balkan-Anatolian , meridional to submeridional. The most northwestern point of range is in E Austria (48.0°N, 16.7°E). In the south in entire Balkans and Asia Minor (here east to 44°E). The altitudinal range in Asia Minor is very wide: from sea level to 2350 m (at 40.6°N). Sympatric with L. paralienus in the NW Balkans and Bulgaria.

Diagnosis ( Tab. 4 , Figs. 35 –36; key):

Medium-sized (CS 894 µm). Scape and maxillary palp length indices rather short (SL/CS 900 0.968, MP6/CS 900 0.160). Number of mandibular dents medium (MaDe 900 8.20). Clypeal pubescence dense (sqPDCL 900 3.42). Pronotal setae very long (PnHL/CS 900 0.161). Dorsum of scape and extensor profile of hind tibia without or with only few semierect setae. It differs from L. paralienus by shorter scape and terminal segment of maxillary palp as well as longer pronotal setae and from L. casevitzi by much shorter terminal segment of maxillary palps (MP6/ CS 900 0.160 vs. 0.212). Coloration: whole body dark brown with a distinct blackish component. Scape, tarsae and mandibles a little lighter with a yellowish component.

Biology. See Seifert (2018).

Comments. L. bombycina is safely separable from the other three species of the L. paralienus species complex by different variants of NC-clustering ( Fig. 112 ).

Figures

Figs. 35 and 36: Lasius bombycina

Figs. 112: NC-clustering of 49 nest samples of Lasius paralienus(light grey bars), 20 nest samples of L. bombycina (black bars) and 15 samples of L. casevitzi (dark grey bars).