Lepisiota obtusa (Emery)
 Type location Eritrea
(Acantholepis carbonaria Emery var. obtusa n. var.,
Emery, 1901e: 63,
worker; raised to species Collingwood, 1985: 296) - see below
worker only
described  .
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Emery's (1901e) brief description is on  . Also reported from Sudan, Port
Sudan by G Muller (Finzi, 1939a).
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 The photomontage
of the (presumably) type worker is collated
from http://www.antweb.org/specimen.do?name=casent0905150
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Characteristics
MAJOR CI 91; SI 125; OI 30; PI
185
Appearance - generally shiny with weak shagreening
all over (sand-paper like) giving rough appearnce
Legs - coxae and femora dark orange brown rest
lighter orange brown; very sparse decumbent pubescence
Scapes and funiculi - orange brown except darkening
of apical third of scapes with abundant short coarse pubescence
Full face shape of head - ovoid with convex occiput,
maximum width at midlength of eyes; narrowest at posterior margin of
clypeus 70% of maxium
Frontal carinae - not obvious beyond antennal
insertions
Erect hairs on face - restricted to a few pairs of
very fine quite short hairs, several pairs on clypeus; sparse decumbent
pubescence
Pronotum erect hairs - several distinctive long
hairs and sparse, quite short, fine sharp whitish hairs
Clypeus hairs - a median long pale fine hair, plus a
fringe of short hairs on anterior margin; other longer hairs up face of
clypeus
Clypeus - with a weak longitudinal keel; stronger in
minor
Eyes - moderately convex, distinctly breaking sides
in full face view
Mandibles - smooth orange-brown
Palpi - dark-brown
Pronotum profile - moderately convex
Metanotal welt - distinct with sharp triangular
profile
Propodeum spines - reduced to triangular processes,
propodeum with slightly convex dorsum; declivity weakly concave
Petiole - scale fairly narrow in profile, upper
margin rounded in profile, from in front apex rounded; apex more than
half as wide as propodeum
Posterior peduncle of petiole - shorter than base of
scale in profile
Gaster - with rounded anterior margin; erect hairs
quite abundant on all tergite; dense covering of fine whitish pubescence
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Oxford University Museum
specimens
Lepisiota obtusa
B Taylor det.
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Egypt
M James
2002-001
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2002
Sinai
28°33' N
33°56' E
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St Katherine
protectorate around the town of St Katherine, in mountains above 1500m
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6
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Lepisiota obtusa
B Taylor det.
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Egypt
A Shepherd
O4
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2010
Sinai
28°33' N
33°56' E
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St Katherine
protectorate around the town of St Katherine, in mountains above 1500m
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2
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Lepisiota obtusa
B Taylor det.
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Egypt
A Shepherd
Plant 45
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2010
Sinai
28°33' N
33°56' E
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St Katherine
protectorate around the town of St Katherine, in mountains above 1500m
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1
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Lepisiota obtusa
B Taylor det.
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Egypt
A Shepherd
Plant 49
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2010
Sinai
28°33' N
33°56' E
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St Katherine
protectorate around the town of St Katherine, in mountains above 1500m
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1
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Lepisiota obtusa
B Taylor det.
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Egypt
A Shepherd
Plant 65
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2010
Sinai
28°33' N
33°56' E
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St Katherine
protectorate around the town of St Katherine, in mountains above 1500m
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1
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Lepisiota obtusa
B Taylor det.
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Egypt
A Shepherd
mid striga
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2010
Sinai
28°33' N
33°56' E
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St Katherine
protectorate around the town of St Katherine, in mountains above 1500m
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2
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Lepisiota obtusa
B Taylor det.
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Egypt
W Ferguson
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30.ii.1980
Sinai
Wadi Beaty
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1
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Lepisiota obtusa
B Taylor det.
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Egypt
J Kugler
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27.x.1978
Sinai
Sarabit El Hadan
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1
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Lepisiota obtusa
B Taylor det.
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Egypt
Sytinski-Salz
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12.v.1970
Sinai
Sarabit El Khadim |
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1
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 Egypt records - the
photomontages are of workers collected in the Sinai Desert, Egypt, St
Katherine
Protectorate around the town of St Katherine, in mountains above 1500m,
in early 2002, by Mike James, and in 2010 by Amy Shepherd, both
research
students of Francis Gilbert.
Other specimens have been sent to BT by Armin Ionescu,
Tel Aviv University from Sinai, Sarabit Khadim (South Sinai),
17.v.1970, leg. Bytinski-Salz, & Sarabit El Hadan, 27.x.1978, leg.
Kugler.
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