Romblonella longinoi General, sp. n.
Creators: name: General, David Emmanuel M.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2016
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Hymenoptera
Formicidae
Romblonella
Romblonella longinoi

description: <b> <i>Romblonella longinoi</i> General sp. n.</b> <b>urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act: 78 EC 95 E 1-4 BFE- 49 B 9 -BC 70 -AD 3913770 D 4 E</b> Measurements and indices Worker measurements of holotype worker [paratype (n= 17) mean: range in brackets]: TL 4.01 [3.97: 3.67-4.14], HL 0.90 [0.89: 0.79-0.97], AHW 0.63 [0.69: 0.61-0.77], PHW 0.85 [0.84: 0.77-0.90], SL 0.54 [0.50: 0.36-0.58], EL 0.13 [0.18: 0.12-0.22], EW 0.13 [0.13: 0.11-0.14], PW 0.67 [0.63: 0.58-0.67], ML 1.13 [1.07: 1.01-1.13], SPL 0.43 [0.38: 0.32-0.43], PetL 0.47 [0.42: 0.38-0.47], PetW 0.36 [0.35: 0.3 1 - 0.49], PetH 0.47 [0.43: 0.38- 0.49], PPL 0.31 [0.30: 0.27-0.34], PPW 0.45 [0.45: 0.41-0.47], PPH 0.41 [0.39: 0.36-0.41], GL 1.08 [1.17: 1.03-1.42]. Indices: CI 82 [86: 80-98], EI 16 [22: 13-25], SI 73 [65: 47-77]. <b>Description of worker (Figures 1-4):</b> In full face view, posterior margin of head shallowly emarginate; head longer than wide; sides of head diverging posteriorly; eyes laterally located, slightly behind midlength of head; shallow scrobe present; frontal carina long, almost reaching the posterior margin of head; scapes short, exceeding posterior edge of eye by about 2 X width of distal scape; antennal formula 12: 3; mandibles triangular, with 6 robust teeth; palp formula 5: 3; median clypeus carinate, with a median carina flanked by 3 pairs of lateral carinae; median clypeus inserted between frontal lobes and about as wide as frontal lobe; anterior clypeal margin entire, without an isolated median seta; head rugoreticulate with short cross-hatches that reach the adjacent rugae; punctae in interstitial spaces; mandibles striate. In lateral view, dorsal margin of mesosoma evenly convex and arched, without grooves or sutures; propodeal spines long and stout; petiole sessile, with anterodorsally directed angle over petiolar spiracle; petiole massive, larger and taller than postpetiole; anterior subpetiolar denticle present; spurs absent on meso- and metatibia. In dorsal view, pronotum with angulate humeri; sides of promesonotum converging posteriorly; sides of propodeum subparallel but bulging slightly anterior to propodeal spiracle; stout propodeal spines slightly divergent through their entire length; mesosoma, petiole and postpetiole dorsally reticulate with interstitial punctulae; first gastral segment(= 4 th abdominal) punctulate. Head with evenly distributed short, blunt erect hairs that are shorter than distance between them; scape with suberect hairs; short, blunt erect hairs sparsely distributed over rest of body. Body distinctly bi-colored; body yellow to orange except for brown antennal club, legs, distal and lateral edges of first gastral segment, and gastral segments 2-5. Mean measurements (range in brackets) and indices of male paratype (n= 2): TL 4.0 [3.96- 4.03], HL 0.72 [0.68-0.76], AHW 0.40 [0.40 - 0.40], PHW 0.69 [0.68-0.70], SL 0.15 [0.14- 0.16], EL 0.38 [0.37-0.40], EW 0.28 [0.28- 0.29], PW 0.57 [0.56-0.58], ML 1.14 [1.13- 1.15], GL 1.30 [1.30 - 1.30], CI 96 [93-100], EI 55 [53-58], SI 73 [70-76]. <b>Diagnosis of male paratype (Figures 5-15):</b> Alate; approximately as long as worker, but more gracile. In full-face view, head longer than broad; sides of head diverging posteriorly, posterior head width behind compound eyes about ¾ wider than anterior head width; ocelli not unusually large (compared with images of male <i>R. palauensis</i>, M.R.Smith, 1953), width of ocelli subequal to distance between lateral ocellus and median ocellus; lateral ocelli separated by about 2 X width of median ocellus; compound eye large, convex, occupying about 2 / 3 side of the head; posterior margin of head medially straight, laterally with lobes; antenna long, subfiliform, with 13 segments (Figures 6 and 7); length of antennomeres (one male measured) antennal scape, 0.0 8 mm; antennomere 2, 0.0 4 mm; antennomere 3, 0.2 7 mm; antennomere 4-7, range = 0.1 2 - 0.1 9 mm; antennomere 8, 0.23 mm; antennomere 9-13, range = 0.1 3 - 0.1 8 mm; antennomere 4-7 slightly and gently broadened distally, such that the basal end of succeeding segment is narrower than the distal end; antennomere 3-7 broader than antennomere 8-13; clypeus broadly projecting anteriorly, forming a rounded obtuse angle; mandible triangular, well-developed and functional; masticatory margin with 6 sharp triangular teeth; apical tooth longest, about 2 X longer than preapical tooth; tooth 4 smallest; rest of teeth subequal; palp formula 5: 3. In lateral view, lower portion of compound eye not obscuring gena and ventral margin of head; pronotum with a flat dorsal outline; mesonotum forming a low dome that slopes gently posteriorly to the propodeal dorsum; mesepimeron not bearing epimeral lobe; vertical impression on anterior third of metakatepisternum; propodeal spiracle circular; propodeal declivity almost vertical, forming a rounded obtuse angle with the propodeal dorsum; petiole tube-like, more than 2 X longer than tall, with an indistinct, truncated node; postpetiole about half as long as petiole, with a low, rounded node; first gastral segment (AIV) longest, about half the length of gaster; tibial spurs absent on middle and hind legs; external genitalia as in Figures 11 to 14. In dorsal view, notauli and parapsidal furrows present; notauli abbreviated, not meeting posteriorly; petiole longer than wide; postpetiole wider than petiole; gaster elongateovate. Forewing (Figure 9) with pterostigma; cross-veins 1 r-rs and 2 r-rs present; free abscissa 2 rs-m originating at distal 2 / 3 of Rs (radial sector) vein. Four closed cells present: C, R, 2 R 1, and 3 R 1. Hindwing as in Figure 10. Clypeus carinate, with about 6 short, sinuate longitudinal carinae; head longitudinally rugulose, with short cross-hatches that do not reach the adjacent rugula, and with a ground surface of fine reticulation; mandibles longitudinally carinate; dorsal mesosoma ruguloreticulate; propodeum transversely rugose; petiole dorsally and laterally rugo-reticulate; postpetiole dorsally and laterally ruguloreticulate; gaster finely reticulate dorsally. Pale yellow erect and sub-erect hairs evenly but sparsely distributed all over body; legs with decumbent hairs; antennae with yellowish, short, fine hairs. Body and distal 5 antennal segments brown; mandibles, basal 8 antennal segments and tarsi yellowish-brown. Gyne unknown. Material examined Holotype worker, “ MALAYSIA: Sabah, Mamutik Island, 10 m asl, 5.96657 °N, 116.01336 °E ± 200m, 29.VIII. 2010, leg. J. Longino, JTL 7211, ex dead stem, CASENT0617007” (deposited in CASC). Paratypes (17 workers, 2 male alates) same data as holotype (deposited in ANIC, BMNH, CASC, DMGC, JTLC, MCZC, USNM). <b>Bionomics:</b> This species, represented by a nest series, was collected from a dead stem in wet tropical forest. <b>Etymology:</b> This species is dedicated to my friend and colleague, Dr. John T. Longino, who collected this rare nest series with 2 associated males. Comparative Notes The worker of <i>R. longinoi</i> <b>sp. n.</b> is distinguishable from the workers of all known species of the genus in its head capsule that is posteriorly broadened. All other species possess a head capsule that is roughly parallel-sided. Other morphological differences are summarized in the key. In addition, <i>R. longinoi</i> <b>sp. n.</b> workers are colored differently from any other <i>Romblonella</i> species. The male <i>R. longinoi</i> <b>sp. n.</b> is distinguished from <i>R. palauensis</i> M.R. Smith, 1953 by the following characters: sides of head diverging posteriorly, ocelli not unusually large, lateral ocelli separated by about 2 X width of median ocellus; compound eye large, convex, occupying about 2 / 3 side of the head, lower portion of compound eye not obscuring gena and ventral margin of head, free abscissa 2 rs-m originating at distal 2 / 3 of Rs (radial sector) vein, and propodeum transversely rugose (Smith, 1953).
description: Published as part of <i>David Emmanuel M. General, 2016, Romblonella longinoi (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), a new species and first record of the genus from Sabah, Malaysia, with a key to the species of Romblonella Wheeler, 1935, pp. 112-119 in Halteres 7</i> on pages 113-117, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.55319
description: {"references": ["Smith, M. R. 1953. A new Romblonella from Palau, and the first description of a Romblonella male (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Journal of the New York Entomological Society 61: 163 - 167."]}