Current View: All Antweb
Change View
Cite this page

Citing AntWeb

X

To cite this page, please use the following:

· For print: . Accessed

· For web:


Species: Pheidole beloceps   Wilson, 2003 


Classification:
Compare Images
Download Data

Taxonomic History (provided by Barry Bolton, 2017)

Pheidole beloceps Wilson, 2003A: 376, figs. (s.w.) COSTA RICA. Neotropic. AntCat AntWiki HOL

Distribution:

(based on species list records)
Neotropical Region: Americas, Cartago, Central America, Costa Rica, Heredia, Honduras, Matagalpa, Mexico, Nicaragua, Puntarenas

Distribution Notes:

Nicaragua, Costa Rica. Costa Rica: Atlantic and southern Pacific lowlands.

Biology:

This species inhabits lowland wet to moist forest leaf litter. It is most often encountered in Winkler and Berlese samples. Workers were once collected at a honey/oil bait on the forest floor. Its frequency in Berlese samples suggests it is largely subterranean.

Comments:

Note by Longino, 6 Nov 2013: I re-evaluated my concept of P. beloceps. DNA barcoding puts Costa Rican (La Selva) and Nicaraguan specimens in different clusters. The Nicaraguan specimens have the major worker with larger, more rectangular head, with vertex lobes smooth and shiny. This form occurs elsewhere in Nicaragua, Honduras, and Chiapas, Mexico, but so far there are no Guatemala records. The minors are indistinguishable from Costa Rican beloceps. I put this northern form in the morphospecies JTL225. Among the mounted material, the only site where both species occurred was Cerro Musún in southern Nicaragua. Pheidole beloceps was in the miniWinkler transects at 700-800m elevation; Pheidole JTL225 was in higher elevation maxiWinklers, 1000-1400m. In the database, I reidentified all material north of Musún as JTL225, including material in etoh that I did not re-examine. For Musún, I identified all material below 800m as P. beloceps; all material above as JTL225. Ethanol material should be re-examined, although minors cannot be separated at this point.

Taxonomic Treatment (provided by Plazi)

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

Pheidole belocepsHNS new species

types Mus. Comp. Zool. Harvard.

etymology Gr belocepsHNS, arrow-headed, referring to the elongate and vertically thin head capsule.

diagnosis A small, yellow species whose major has an elongated head, the dorsal surface of which, with the exception of the midclypeus and frontal triangle, is completely foveolate and opaque; the rest of the cephalic sculpturing comprising longitudinal carinulae confined to the anterior half of the capsule; antennal scrobe absent; thick long, vertical propodeal spines are present, thin tips turning slightly forward in side view; small, subangulate mesonotal convexity present, and postpetiolar node conulate. Similar to charazanaHNS, longinoiHNS, neolongicepsHNS, and prolixaHNS, but differing from each in various combinations of the above traits, and other traits, as illustrated.

Measurements (mm) Holotype major: HW 0.74, HL 0.96, SL 0.30, EL 0.06, PW 0.42. Paratype minor: HW 0.40, HL 0.48, SL 0.36, EL 0.04, PW 0.26. color Major: body dark yellow, appendages medium yellow. Minor: concolorous medium yellow.

Range Costa Rica.

Biology Found in leaf litter of lowland rainforest; workers were attracted to baits (Longino 1997).

figure Upper: holotype, major. Lower: paratype, minor. COSTA RICA: 4 km east of Turrialba, Cartago, 550 m (J. T. Longino). Scale bars = 1 mm.

Specimen Habitat Summary

Found most commonly in these habitats: 220 times found in mature wet forest, 16 times found in tropical wet forest, 15 times found in lowland rainforest, 11 times found in montane wet forest, 1 times found in Puesto5,36G,10m., 1 times found in Puesto2, 145G,10m., 1 times found in wet forest, 1 times found in Trampa5,289G. 10m., 2 times found in evergreen forest, 1 times found in Puesto10,164G,10m, ...

Found most commonly in these microhabitats: 238 times ex sifted leaf litter, 18 times Hojarasca, 5 times at bait, 1 times litter/soil core, 1 times Bosque Primario, Suelo, 2 times SCH, 1 times Primary forest, 1 times One of the ALAS berlese samples., 1 times bajo de M/23.

Collected most commonly using these methods: 233 times miniWinkler, 24 times Mini Winkler, 8 times Berlese, 11 times Winkler, 6 times baiting, 2 times Malaise, 1 times flight intercept trap, 1 times Lure/Bait, 1 times maxiWinkler.

Elevations: collected from 50 - 1390 meters, 181 meters average

Type specimens: holotype major Pheidole beloceps: inbiocri001282094; Paratype Pheidole beloceps: casent0625437, casent0625438; paratype Pheidole beloceps: inbiocri001243000, inbiocri001268544, inbiocri001270454, inbiocri001270969, inbiocri001270970, inbiocri001270971, inbiocri001271022, inbiocri001274755, inbiocri001281942



See something amiss? Send us an email.
Enlarge Map