Paratrechina incallida (Santschi)

Type location São Thomé I. (Prenolepis (Nylanderia) incallida n. sp., Santschi, 1915c: 263, illustrated, worker; in Paratrechina (Nylanderia) Emery, 1925b: 218) - see below
junior synonym arlesi (Paratrechina (Nylanderia) arlesi n. sp., Bernard, 1952: 257, illustrated, worker), type location Guinea; from Mt. Nimba, 10 workers from Ravine I of Mount Tô (stations B1,28 and B2.41), 2 workers from Ravine 3 (Lamotte, in Bernard, 1952); cotypes numerous workers from the same places; worker only described - see below
worker only .

Santschi's (1915c) description is at . Bernard's (1952) description is at .

Santschi's (1915c) description is -
WORKER - TL 2.2 mm; head oval. Eyes quite large, set a little forward of midline. Clypeus convex (less so than lepida), subcarinate, anterior border weakly but quite broadly scalloped medially. Mandibles smooth with sparse puncturations; 6 teeth, the third very small (albipes has four teeth). Scape surpassing occiput by more than half its length. Thorax somewhat elongated; pronotum wider than long, very rounded dorso-laterally; mesonotum as long as anterior width, feebly raised posteriorly; metanotum a little wider than long, with the spiracles quite close and raised dorsally. Propodeum convex and very elevated; dorsum shorter than the declivity. Petiole scale very obliquely angled forward, summit feebly convex and wider than the base.
Colour clear red brown; gaster darker; funiculus, tibia and hind femora clear yellow. Smooth with front of head feebly reticulate. Shiny. Moderately abundant, brown, quite sharp, erect hairs; four pairs of macrochaets on alitrunk; metanotum and propodeum without hairs. Pubescence scarce except on antennae.
Holotype worker only from San Thomé.

Note: LaPolla, Hawkes & Fisher (2011: 12) place arlesi as a junior synonym of incallida.

The photomontage of the type worker is collated from http://www.antweb.org/specimen.do?name=casent0179576.

The photomontage of the arlesi type worker is collated from http://www.antweb.org/specimen.do?name=casent0913671.

Bernard's (1952) description translated is:

WORKER - TL 2.8-3.1 mm; forebody brown, varying in darkness, gaster blackish, appendages clear brown. All shiny, without puncturation except on the propodeum which is finely puncturated on the dorsum and sides. Strong pilosity, made up of large brown erect hairs, over all the body; pubescence yellowish, fine and sparse.

Placed in subgenus Nylanderia Emery, by Bernard, who regarded it as in a group with other members known from Cameroun to Gabon. The others were P. grisoni Forel (type location Zaïre, with subspecies fuscula Menozzi, from Fernando Po), P. incallida Santschi (type location San Thomé I.), and lepida Santschi; but all three were smaller (TL 2.0-2.4 mm) and had an elongated propodeum, with a smooth propodeum. With arlesi the propodeum was broader than long, very enlarged towards the posterior, with two clear ridges toward the centre. In profile arlesi was steeply declined, being level or only slightly declined in the others. Other than the clear distinctions of the posterior shape of the thorax, arlesi had similar characters to incallida. Bernard dedicated the species to M. C. Arlès, artist from his laboratory who mounted and photographed many of the ants from Nimba.

Oxford University Museum specimens

Paratrechina incallida B Taylor det.	Cameroun A Fotso Kuate Paratrechina sp1	28.vii.2007 Matomb 03°54'30" N 11°25'58" E	Tuna bait in fallow	1
Paratrechina incallida B Taylor det.	Gabon Y Braet Gabon 56	23.vii-19.viii.2006 Pongara 00°34' N 09°19' E	Pointe Wingombe; forest edge and mini-savannah edging lagoon; malaise trap	1

The photomontage is of a specimen from Gabon; Pongara National Park; collector Yves Braet (Gabon 56). Listed in Braet & Taylor (2008).

The photomontage is of a damaged worker from Cameroun; Matomb; collector A Fotso Kuate (fk paratrechina sp1),

The photomontage is collated from http://www.antweb.org/specimen.do?name=casent0179576 Locality: Ivory Coast: Foret De Tai; no 84;
Collection codes: TD84;Collected by: T. Diomande; Date: 7 Jul 1975

Specimen used by LaPolla, Hawkes & Fisher (2012) to illustrate the species.

Note: the description of arlesi given by Bernard (see below) has the colour as more or less dark brown, gaster blackish, appendages light brown, pilosity of large brown hairs; TL 2.8-3.1; LaPolla, Hawkes & Fisher (2011) state Bernard's type specimens "match the [incallida] type specimens very well" but the two descriptions do not gel. The Santschi description and the CASENT specimen, together with those I show above, and the LaPolla et al modern version do match.