Pheidole veletis, Wilson, E. O., 2003

Wilson, E. O., 2003, Pheidole in the New World. A dominant, hyperdiverse ant genus., Cambridge, MA, USA: Harvard University Press : 246

Pheidole veletis new species

Types Mus. Comp. Zool. Harvard.

Etymology L veletis , skirmisher.

diagnosis Similar to laevinota and rufipilis and somewhat less to laevifrons and variegata , differing in the following combination of traits.

Major: yellow; antennal scape just reaching occipital border; humerus smoothly rounded in dorsal-oblique view; postpetiole subtrapezoidal from above; carinulae originating on frontal lobes extend halfway between level of eye and occiput; anterior fringe of pronotum and dorsal surface of propodeum transversely carinulate.

Minor: yellow; anterior fringe of pronotum transversely carinulate; propodeal spine reduced to denticle. Measurements (mm) Holotype major: HW 0.96, HL 0.94, SL 0.72, EL 0.14, PW 0.50. Paratype minor: HW 0.52, HL 0.58, SL 0.66, EL 0.12, PW 0.38. color Major and minor: concolorous medium yellow.

Range Known from the type locality (Las Palmas, Bolivia), from Barro Colorado Island, Panama, and from Santarem, Para, Brazil.

biology A colony found by Alfred Emerson on Barro Colorado Island, Panama, was nesting in a rotten log on the forest floor.

Figure Upper: holotype, major. Lower: paratype, minor. BOLIVIA: vicinity of Las Palmas, Santa Cruz (James C. Trager). Scale bars = 1 mm.