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Species: Pheidole absurda   Forel, 1886 


Classification:
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Taxonomic History (provided by Barry Bolton, 2017)

Pheidole absurda Forel, 1886b PDF: xlvii (s.) GUATEMALA. Neotropic. AntCat AntWiki

Taxonomic history

Emery, 1890c: 48 (w.).
Senior synonym of Pheidole ridicula: Wilson, 2003A: 646.
See also: Emery, 1894l PDF: 54.

Distribution:

(based on species list records)
Nearctic Region: North America, Texas, United States
Neotropical Region: Americas, Central America, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Heredia, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Petén, Puntarenas, San José, Tamaulipas, Veracruz

Distribution Notes:

South Texas to Costa Rica. Costa Rica: Central Valley and Monteverde area.

Biology:

Pheidole absurda excavates deep nests in soil. Colonies are granivorous and store seeds in special chambers. Creighton (1966) studied the habits of this species (as P. ridicula) in south Texas. It seems to prefer open areas and seasonal habitats; it is not a lowland rainforest ant. It may follow a pattern of being a widespread lowland ant in the northern part of the range, becoming a mid-elevation species at the southern limit of the range.

References:

Creighton, W. S. 1966. The habits of Pheidole ridicula Wheeler with remarks on habit patterns in the genus Pheidole (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Psyche (Cambridge) 73:1-7.

Taxonomic Treatment (provided by Plazi)

Scientific Name Status Publication Pages ModsID GoogleMaps
Pheidole absurda   Wilson, E. O., 2003, Pheidole in the New World. A dominant, hyperdiverse ant genus., Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, pp. -1--1: 646, (download) 646 20017
Pheidole absurda   Forel, A., 1908, Fourmis de Costa-Rica, récoltées par M. Paul Biolley., Bulletin de la Societe Vaudoise des Sciences Naturelles 44, pp. 35-72: 52, (download) 52 4014

Specimen Habitat Summary

Found most commonly in these habitats: 12 times found in tropical rainforest, 10 times found in tropical moist forest, 1 times found in moist forest, 1 times found in urban courtyard, 1 times found in coffee farm, 1 times found in Mesquite juniper woodland, 1 times found in pasture, 1 times found in primary rainforest, 1 times found in secondary vegetation, 1 times found in small crater.

Found most commonly in these microhabitats: 17 times at bait, 1 times forest patch; nest in soil, 5 times ex sifted leaf litter, 1 times nest in soil under stone, 1 times terre, 1 times pitfall trap, 1 times in soil under dead wood, 1 times foragers.

Collected most commonly using these methods: 17 times Baiting, 5 times Search, 5 times miniWinkler, 0 times Grassy roadway, 1 times pitfall, 1 times under dung.

Elevations: collected from 120 - 1380 meters, 386 meters average

Type specimens: Lectotype of Pheidole absurda: casent0908156; paralectotype of Pheidole absurda: casent0908157



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