Decamorium uelense (Santschi)

Type location Zaïre (Tetramorium (Decamorium) decem For. stirps uelensis n. st., Santschi, 1923e: 258, worker & queen) collected at Uelé, Vankerhovenville, by Degreef - see below
junior synonym nimba (Decamorium decem Forel race nimba n. sbsp., Bernard, 1952: 250, worker; synonymy by Bolton, 1976: 298; confirmed by Hita Garcia & Fisher, 2014: 87, also see Bolton, 1995) from Guinea, collected at Savane de Kéoulenta, station 1, by Lamotte - see http://www.antweb.org/specimenImages.do?code=casent0914084 .

Santschi's (1923e) description is at ; worker and queen.

Bernard (1952), in the Mt. Nimba, Guinea, report, gave TL 3.1 mm, head brown-black yellow on the anterior third of the face, which was striated and slightly shiny. Dorsal carina of head reaching about the occiput, thorax brown-black entirely striated more shouldered than the type of decem from Rhodesia. Spines, petiole and gaster similar to type but more slender femora also more slender. Clypeus flat, yellow, finely longitudinally striated. Antennae brown, last segment yellow; segments preceding the club twice as long as wide (decem 1.3 times as long as wide; but ultor as nimba).

 Bolton (1976) noted that it appears only to form small colonies. In Nigeria, it nests in rotten logs or twigs in leaf litter. Forage in leaf litter, often in single file and will prey on termites. Quite extensively studied at Mokwa, in the Guinea savannah zone, by Longhurst, Johnson & Wood (1978), especially its foraging and predation on termites (identifity confirmed by Hita Garcia & Fisher, 2014). Bradshaw & Howse (1984) mention its having a predominance of alcohols in its mandibular gland secretions. Apparently these secretions are undetectable by termites, and represent an example of "chemical crypsis".

Collected in Ghana by Bigger (1981a) at CRIG, 16 workers from the ground under Amelonado cocoa (listed as decem). He also found 2 workers of Decamorium species A on the ground at the same site. The latter may explain the confusion I feel over the Belshaw & Bolton (1994b) findings, see Decamorium decem. Hita Garcia & Fisher list a worker from Legon, collector D Leston.

The photomontage of a worker from the type collection is collated from http://www.antweb.org/specimen.do?name=casent0906826.

Oxford University Museum specimens

Decamorium uelense B Taylor det.	Ghana S Sky Stephens 06G0038	2006	.	1
Decamorium uelense B Taylor det. Queen	Congo E Zassi sp 47 05-t-1	4-5.ii.2008 Lésio-Louna 03°20'12.0" S 015°28'43.6" E	Village Mah; 24h pitfall trap	1

The photomontage is of a worker from Ghana, collected by S Sky Stephens, 2006.

The photomontage is of a queen from Congo, Réserve de Lésio-Louna, S 03°20'12.0" E 015°28'43.6"; 4-5.ii.2008; n sp 47; pitfall trap 05, t 1; Village Mah; collected by Eric Zassi.