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A Revision of the Neotropical Solenopsidini Ant Genus Oxyepoecus Santschi, 1926 (Hymenoptera: Formicidae: Myrmicinae). 2. Final

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A Revision of the Neotropical Solenopsidini Ant Genus Oxyepoecus Santschi, 1926 (Hymenoptera: Formicidae: Myrmicinae). 2. Final Volume 49(23):289-309, 2009 A revision of the Neotropical Solenopsidini ant genus OXYEPOECUS Santschi, 1926 (Hymenoptera: Formicidae: Myrmicinae). 2. Final. Key for species and revision of the Rastratus species-group Nicolas Lavour de Albuquerque1,2 Carlos Roberto Ferreira Brandão1,3 AbsTracT In the first paper of this series (Albuquerque & Brandão, 2004) we revised the Vezenyii species group of the exclusively Neotropical solenopsidine (Myrmicinae) ant genus Oxyepoecus. In this closing paper we update distribution information on the Vezenyii group species and revise the other Oxyepoecus species-group (Rastratus). We describe two species (Oxyepoecus myops n. sp. and O. rosai n. sp.) and redescribe previously known species of the group [O. daguerrei (Santschi, 1933), O. mandibularis (Emery, 1913), O. plaumanni Kempf, 1974, O. rastratus Mayr, 1887, and O. reticulatus Kempf, 1974], adding locality records and comments on the meagre biological data of these species. We also present an identification key to Oxyepoecus species based on workers. Keywords: Formicidae; Myrmicinae; Solenopsidini; Oxyepoecus; Revision; Rastratus group. INTRODUCTION already five known species. We also present a new version of the key for identifying Oxyepoecus species Albuquerque & Brandão published in 2004 based on workers. the first part of a revision of the exclusively Neo- Since Albuquerque & Brandão (2004) was pub- tropical Solenopsidini ant genus Oxyepoecus Santschi, lished Oxyepoecus has been cited a few more times in with a generic diagnosis, descriptions of five species the literature. Bolton (2003) recognized Oxyepoecus as and redescriptions of six species of the Vezenyii spe- a valid member of the Solenopsis genus group of Sole- cies-group. In this paper we present information on nopsidini. The majority of the other citations refers to Vezenyii group specimens recently acquired by the records in faunistic surveys: Maschwitz et al. (2000), Museu de Zoologia and revise the other Oxyepoecus Vasconcelos et al. (2003), Ketterl et al. (2003), Ma- species-group, Rastratus, describing two new species, cedo (2004), Silva & Silvestre (2004), and Morini and redescribing and registering new localities for the et al. (2007). 1. Museu de Zoologia, Universidade de São Paulo, Caixa Postal 42.494, 04218-970, São Paulo, SP, Brasil. 2. E-mail: [email protected] 3. E-mail: [email protected] 290 Albuquerque, N.L. & Brandão, C.R.F.: Revision of the ant genus OXYEPOECUS. 2. Rastratus species group MATErial anD METHODS genus, Albuquerque & Brandão (2004) described the subpostpetiolar process as having an anterior and a The main collection used in this work was that posterior area, linked by a concave line. However, of the Museu de Zoologia da Universidade de São what we called the posterior area of the process cor- Paulo (MZSP); material from others sources are ac- responds in reality to the ventrally produced socket knowledged in the examined material sections; after margin of the postpetiole, which is linked to the species descriptions or redescripitions we list types true ventral process by a concave line in lateral view. and locality records for each. The acronyms adopted The true postpetiolar ventral process of Oxyepoecus follow Brandão (2000). All type specimens cited were females looks like a tooth in side view under the ste- examined, but for Oxyepoecus mandibularis and are reoscope, without noticeable notch in the middle. deposited in the MZSP, unless otherwise stated. As However, when seen in frontal view, it looks like a most studied specimens belong to the MZSP, we only crest with the two divergent apexes linked by a con- cite collection acronyms in the examined material sec- cave line. tions when we deposited material there: Morphometric measures follow Kempf (1974) and Bolton (2000); measurements were obtained us- AMNH: American Museum of Natural History, ing micrometric reticule in a Wild M8® stereomicro- New York, NY, USA. scope with ocular lens 16 X, or using the scale of a CASC: California Academy of Sciences, San Fran- LEO 440® scanning electron microscope microphoto- cisco, CA, USA. graphs; all measures are given in mm. Abbreviations CECL: Coleção Entomológica Angelo Moreira da for the measurements are: Costa Lima. Instituto de Biologia, Uni- versidade Federal Rural do Rio de Janeiro t.l.: total length: the summed length of head Seropédica, RJ, Brazil. Note: cited as IBUS length (h.l.) plus the close mandibles, in Brandão (2000). mesosoma length (a.l.), longitudinal axis CPDC: Centro de Pesquisas do Cacau, Itabuna, length of the waist (petiole and postpeti- BA, Brazil. ole in dorsal view), and longitudinal axis ICNC: Instituto de Ciencias Naturales de la Uni- length of gaster (in dorsal view) taken versidad Nacional de Colombia, Bogotá, separately. Colombia. h.w.: head width: maximum width of the head IHVL: Instituto de Investigación de Recursos Bio- capsule measured in full-face view, at the lógicos Alexander von Humboldt, Bogotá, transversal line that touches the posterior Colombia. margin of both compound eyes. LACM: Los Angeles County Museum of Natural h.l.: head length: the maximum measurable History, Los Angeles, CA, USA length of head capsule excluding man- MIZA: Instituto de Zoología Agrícola, Facultad dibles, measured in full-face view, in a de Agronomía, Universidad Central de Ve- straight line from the mid-point of the nezuela, Maracay, Aragua, Venezuela. anterior clypeal margin to the mid-point MZSP: Museu de Zoologia da Universidade de of the vertex margin, in the same view as São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil. head width. USNM: National Museum of Natural History, m.l.e.: maximum length of eyes: with the head in Smithsonian Institution, Washington, lateral view, through the major axis of the D.C., USA. compound eyes, often between anterior and posterior margins. The terms for external morphology and surface s.l.: antennal scape length: the chord length sculpturing follow Bolton (2000), Harris (1979), of the antennal scape, excluding the basal Shattuck (1999), and Hölldobler & Wilson (1990). condyle and its neck. The reproductive females are called “gynes”, as sug- a.l.: mesosoma length of thorax: the diagonal gested by de Andrade & Baroni Urbani (1999). Some length of mesosoma in lateral view, from authors treated ants’ head orientation (Trager, 1989; the mid-point of the anterior pronotal de- Snelling, 1989 and Wheeler, 1989), but we prefer to clivity to the posterior basal angle of the follow Kugler (1994) considering the mandibles as metapleuron. set in the anterior end of the head, and the vertexal h.f.l.: hind femur length: the chord length of the margin in its posterior end. In the diagnosis for this hind femur, excluding the trochanter. Papéis Avulsos de Zoologia, 49(23), 2009 291 m.w.pr.: maximum width of pronotum: with RESULTS the mesosoma in dorsal view, measured through the longest axis of pronotum, Since our revision of Oxyepoecus of the Veze- perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of nyii species group (Albuquerque & Brandão, 2004) body. the MZSP collection has received samples of differ- m.w.p.: maximum width of petiole: with the me- ent species from the Vezenyii group that either sig- sosoma in dorsal view, measured through nificantly extend the known geographical distribution the longest axis of petiole, perpendicular of the species, or support our hypotheses on species to the longitudinal axis of body. identities in Oxyepoecus. They are: m.w.pp.: maximum width of postpetiole: with the mesosoma in dorsal view, measured Oxyepoecus browni Albuquerque & Brandão. Sev- through the longest axis of postpetiole, en workers from Brazil, ES, REBIO Sooretama perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of (19°04’21”S, 39°56’57”W), 14-15.v.2002, Schoered- body. er, J.H. & Ribas, C.R. col. (samples # 3, 13, 20, 30, c.i.: cephalic index: ratio between head width 31) (specimens from sample 3 deposited in CPDC). (h.w.) and length (h.l.), multiplied by 100. Oxyepoecus bruchi Santschi. One worker from Brazil, SC, Palhoça, Pq. Est. Serra do Tabuleiro (27°44’28”S, Others abbreviations are: 48°41’50”W), 02-10.vi.2003. Silva, R.R.; Dietz, B.H. & Tavares, A. col. (sample # 6). Two workers from Ar- r.g.d.: in a row across the greatest diameter. gentina, Tucumán, 23.xi.1953, N. Kusnezov # 9133. f.f.v.: full face view p.v.: profile (lateral) view Oxyepoecus crassinodus Kempf. Two workers d.v.: dorsal view from Brazil, PR, Tunas, Parque das Lauráceas (24°51’16”S, 48°43’00,4”W), 21-29.ii.2001, Silva Photographs under scanning electron microscope & Eberhard col. (samples 04, 19). Twelve workers (SEM) model LEO 440® of the MZSP were used to from Brazil, PR, Morretes, Parque Estadual do Pau- diagnose and to separate Oxyepoecus species based on Ôco (25°34’33,5”S, 48°53’19,5”W), Silva, R.R. relatively very small characters. The specimens were & Dietz, B.H. col. (samples # 32, 39, 41, 43, 48). previously cleaned, dried in a Balzer (Bal-Tec® CPD Two workers from Brazil, RS, Floresta Nacional 030) critical-point drier, and covered (Bal-Tec® SCD São Francisco de Paula (29°23-27’S, 50°23-25’W) 050) with gold. Afterwards specimens were mounted 13.vi.2001, Schmid, F.A. col. One worker from on stubs supported by a paper triangle that held the Brazil, SP, Cunha. P.E. Serra do Mar (23°15’03”S, ant using silver glue. The images were obtained under 45°00’26”W), 21-22.iv.2001, A. Tavares & R.R. Sil- variable magnifications (40 to 300 X) according to va col. (sample 36). the size of the specimen. Beam size was not always the same (voltage between 0.5 and 20 KV; and I probe Oxyepoecus inquilinus (Kusnezov). One worker from between 100 pA and 2 mA). After the images were Brazil: SP, Botucatu (“armadilha de solo, em pasta- saved, we enhanced details using Adobe Photoshop gem”), 18.i.1988, L.C.
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