Tetraponera aethiops F Smith
  Type location South
Africa (Tetraponera Æthiops,
F Smith, 1877b: 71, worker; Santschi, 1911g: 207, male,
from Gabon; Forel, 1913c: 352, queen, name only, from Nigeria) - see
below
junior
synonym spininoda (Sima spininoda, nov. sp., André,
1892a: 51,
worker & queen; synonymy
Emery, 1912b: 97) from Gabon, Samkita, by F. Faure - see below
all forms
described (see Bolton, 1995)  .
|
 Smith's (1877b)
description is at  . André's (1892a)
description of spininoda
worker & queen is at  . Santschi's (1911g) description of the
male, from Gabon, is at  . Emery's (1912b) illustrated description
of the queen and what he determined as the new subgenus Pachysima
is at  . Arnold (1916: 174) gave a translation;
this is at  .
Note: The type record "Hab.-S.
Africa" (confirmed by the simple label, below) is curious as the
host plant Barteria fistulosa is described as occurring from
western Nigeria east to the Central African Republic and south to DR
Congo [Medicinal plants by G.H. Schmelzer, A. Gurib-Fakim,
AGROOH., Plant Resources of Tropical Africa (Program]. Arnold (1916)
simply has "South Africa. (G.A. coll.)", whereas he normally gave
details of collections.
|
 Wheeler (as Pachysima
æthiops, 1922, illustrated, profile and full-face view) listed it
from Nigeria (Oni Camp, east of Lagos, W.A. Lamborn), Cameroun
(Bipindi, Zenker; Mundame, Conradt; Bibundi, Tessmann; Metit, G.
Schwab); and many Congo basin locations. He gave considerable
details - TL 9-10 mm, shining jet-black; living in the twigs of
Barteria fistulosa, and in Cameroun, where Tessmann found it in and
on the trunks of Epitaberna myrmoecia; much more square-headed
than the free-ranging species, eyes smaller and nearer the posterior
margin of the head, three ocelli; noticeable ventral processes on both
the petiole and postpetiole. In the report of the Lang-Chapin
expedition there also is much information on the relation between the
ant and the plant (Bequaert, 1922) and on the woody structure of the
plant (by Professor Bailey) (see Ant
Plants).
|
 The
photomontage of the holotype worker is collated from http://www.antweb.org/specimen.do?name=casent0902813.
|
 The
photomontage of the spininoda type worker is collated from http://www.antweb.org/specimen.do?name=casent0913718.
This appears identical to the type above.
|
Oxford University Museum
specimens
Tetraponera aethiops
B Taylor det. |
Cameroun
G Debout & A Dalecky
Cameroon 89
|
18.iv.2001
Bella
3°14.45' N
10°13.33' E
|
Found in domatia of Barteria fistulosa
|
2
|
 |
Tetraponera aethiops
B Taylor det. |
Central African
Republic
P Annoyer
IL
|
14.x.2008
Dzanga-Sangha
03°03'58.3" N
16°08'59.6" E
|
528 m; Camp 1;
20h-3h A 20 m de l'Ayous (Triplochiton
scleroxylon, Sterculiaceae) dans la forêt
|
2
|
|
Tetraponera aethiops
B Taylor det. |
Central African
Republic
P Annoyer
IR 1
|
15.x.2008
Dzanga-Sangha
03°03'55.6" N
16°07'43.1" E
|
543 m; Camp 1;
Journée Prospection en forêt
|
2
|
|
Tetraponera aethiops
B Taylor det.
Queen
|
Central African
Republic
P Annoyer
KK
|
22.x.2008
Dzanga-Sangha
03°01'49.5" N
16°08'31.7" E
|
567 m; Camp 2;
9h-14h; vers ancienne saline du camp vers une ancienne saline
|
1
|
|
Tetraponera aethiops
B Taylor det. |
Central African
Republic
P Annoyer
Camp 3
|
Dzanga-Sangha
02°50’01.8" N
16°08’13.7" E
|
Camp 3, in N'Goma;
375m asl
|
2
|
|
|
 The
photomontage is of workers collected in Cameroun -
south-western tropical coastal forest area between Edéa and Campo
(McKey Wolbachia project, Cameroon 89). Found in domatia of Barteria
fistulosa (Wheeler
illustration right above, click for linked page).
|
 The
photomontage is of a worker from the Central African
Republic, N'Goma;
collector Philippe Annoyer (CAR Camp3), 2005; 4 workers, 1 queen, 1
male.
This is larger than the general descriptions, with a rectangular head
appearing to match the Wheeler drawing. The worker from Gabon (above)
and the specimen below have the size and head shape described by Arnold
(1916).
|
 The
photomontage is of a worker from the Central African
Republic, Dzanga-Sangha NP; collector Philippe Annoyer (CAR IL).
|
 Queen
|
 The photomontage is
of a queen from the Central
African Republic, Dzanga-Sangha NP; collector Philippe Annoyer (CAR
KK).
|
|
