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Costa Rica: mountainous regions above 1000m.
All Simopelta species are nomadic group raiders, convergent with Ecitoninae.
I know this species from 15 separate collections, making it one of the more commonly encountered. It occurs above 800m in the Peñas Blancas Valley and Monteverde cloud forest. I have also seen collections from 700m at Pitilla Biological Station in the Cordillera de Guanacaste, from 1000-1500m elevation in Braulio Carrillo National Park, and at 1200m in Wilson Botanical Garden near San Vito. In Monteverde, I have observed columns foraging high on the Chomogo trail, on cold rainy days. I also observed a column of this species high in the canopy of a cloud forest tree.
Selected Records
JTL15Feb82/1300: Traveling in short columns across the surface of a moss mat. I initially disturbed them, then watched for about one hour. The columns seemed to move back and forth over roughly the same path, disappearing at both ends into the epiphytes. I saw only two ants carrying anything: small hairy larvae; both collected. Afterwards I dug through the epiphytes, but I could find no central nest or brood, just scattered workers. [I cannot locate the "small hairy larvae."]
JTL1991: Cloud forest on ridge crest, juncture of Nuboso and Brillante trails. Simopelta with Pheidole boruca prey; diffuse raiding party on and in moss/soil interface, on ground in treefall gap. Stray Pheidole boruca workers seen in area carrying brood.
Mandible with two apical teeth and large basal tooth, basal tooth relatively sharp (unlike JTL-003); anteromedian clypeal border triangular, strongly projecting, without spine; eye relatively small (unlike oculata); sculpture on face composed of puncta and short transverse rugae (unlike andersoni, paeminosa); head relatively narrow, head width/head length less than 0.8.
This species shows a bimodal distribution of morphology (Figure 1). Some workers are larger, with relatively longer scapes, and the dorsal face of the propodeum is irregularly rugose. Some workers are smaller, with relatively shorter scapes, and the dorsal face of the propodeum is partially smooth and shining. There is a tendency for the collections of smaller workers to be found at lower elevations and more often in Winkler samples. However, there are intermediates. I prefer to consider them a single morphospecies for now.
Figure 1. Scatterplot of head width vs. head length for Simopelta workers. Each point is from a different colony. Head width is maximum width of head in full-face view not including eyes. Head length is maximum length including anteromedian projection of clypeus. Localities are represented by letters: e, 700m in Cordillera de Guanacaste; p, 800-900m in Peñas Blancas Valley; m, 1400-1600m in Monteverde; s, 1100m site on Barva transect in Braulio Carrillo National Park; t, 1500m site on Barva transect. A plot of scape length vs. head length has the same pattern.
Found most commonly in these habitats: 10 times found in cloud forest, 3 times found in montane wet forest, 1 times found in wet forest, 2 times found in cloud forest, mature but probably disturbed, some big trees, bordering road on steep slope, 1 times found in cloud forest edge, near dairy farm pasture, some big trees in rocky areas, probably disturbed primary or old second growth, on a steep slope.
Found most commonly in these microhabitats: 5 times ex sifted leaf litter, 1 times nest in clay bank, 1 times Wet forest. There was a fresh treefall across the trail, a short distance from E, 1 times foraging column, 1 times foragers, 2 times ex sifted litter from forest floor, 2 times ex sifted leaf litter on ground, 1 times Wet forest. Ex sifted leaf litter., 1 times ex sifted leaf litter from canopy, 1 times Cloud forest on ridge crest, juncture of Nuboso and Brillante trails. Simopelta.
Collected most commonly using these methods: 6 times search, 7 times Winkler, 3 times miniWinkler, 1 times maxiWinkler, 1 times Malaise.
Elevations: collected from 700 - 2010 meters, 1445 meters average
Type specimens:
Madagascar
Canada
Brazil
China
Greece
Spain
Australia