Agraulomyrmex damohensis Harshana &amp; Dey 2021, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Harshana, Anand
name: Dey, Debjani
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2021
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Hymenoptera
Formicidae
Agraulomyrmex
Agraulomyrmex damohensis

description: <i>Agraulomyrmex damohensis</i> sp. nov. (Figs 1, 2) <b>Holotype</b>: Worker; India, Madhya Pradesh, Damoh; 23.5185 N, 79.7771 E; 11.IX.2020; Coll. A. Harshana (NPC-AND964) <b>Holotype measurements (mm</b>): HL – 0.31, HM 1 – 0.24, HM 2 – 0.05, HW – 0.30, SL – 0.22, EL – 0.07, WL – 0.30, MsFL – 0.17, MFL – 0.20, MTL – 0.21, PnL – 0.09, PtW – 0.183, ML – 0.09, MtW – 0.14, MsD – 0.08, TL – 1.10; <b>Indices</b>: CI- 93.27, SI 1 – 74.91, SI 2 – 95.20, MFI – 66.67, OI 1 – 22.68, OI 2 – 15.38 <b>Diagnosis</b>: Antennal segments nine without a distinct club; palp formula 6,4; mandible bearing five teeth on masticatory margin with a very small 3 rd tooth; head length (HL) 0.31 mm; body yellow. <b>Description (Holotype): Head</b>. Head subquadrate in full face view, little longer than broad, posterior margin almost straight with rounded corners, slightly convex sides, and covered with dense pubescence (Fig. 1A, 2C); mandible with five teeth on masticatory margin and central third tooth very small (Fig. 2F); mandible sparsely covered with suberect to appressed hairs; maxillary palp six segmented and labial palp four segmented (Fig. 2F); antennae nine segmented, antennal funiculus incrassate towards apices without distinct club, scape little short of reaching posterior margin of head, second segment of antennal funiculus shorter than first segment and length of last segment of funiculus more than twice of its width (Fig. 2C); toruli surpassing the posterior clypeal margin; frontal carinae short; antennae densely covered with suberect to appressed hairs; anterior clypeal margin convex with median downwardly directed long seta, mediolateral region with two erect setae and two erect setae near toruli; other setae on clypeus comparatively small; compound eyes positioned below the cephalic midline with six ommatidia along their maximal diameter (Fig. 2E); ocelli absent. <b>Mesosoma</b>. Promesonotal suture present extending through thoracic pleuron to sternum; mesonotum flat dorsally, not bulging above the pronotum in profile view (Fig. 1C); mesometanotal suture and metanotal groove absent (Fig. 1B, 2A &amp; D); metathoracic spiracles dorsolateral in position, not tumuliform, touching the propodeal suture; dorsum of propodeum flat and much shorter than propodeal declivity; propodeal spiracles circular, distinctly smaller than metathoracic spiracles and positioned dorsolaterally on posterior propodeal declivity; pronotum with a pair of erect setae; pronotum, mesonotum covered with appressed to semi erect hairs while propodeal declivity lacking pubescence; fore tibia with pectinate spur and basitarsus with concave notch; hairs on legs appressed to suberect. <b>Metasoma</b>. Petiole short, inclined forward, almost overhung by gaster and seemingly without pubescence (Fig. 2B); gaster five segmented covered with dense pubescence and erect hairs along the posterior edges of segments; first gastral sternum with three erect hairs at its base; acidopore present. <b>Sculpture and colour</b>. Head, mandible, mesosoma, and metasoma smooth and shining. Body yellow. <b>Etymology</b>: The species name refers to its type locality. <b>Comparative notes</b>: <i>Agraulomyrmex damohensis</i> is the smallest species (HL 0.31 mm and WL 0.30 mm) of genus <i>Agraulomyrmex</i> and it distinctly differs from other known species by having nine segmented antennae. It shows similarities with <i>A. meridionalis</i> in having the following characteristics: palp formula 6,4; body smooth and shiny; compound eyes positioned below the cephalic midline; masticatory margin of mandible with five teeth (although <i>A. meridionalis</i> specimens also may have six teeth on masticatory margin).
description: Published as part of <i>Harshana, Anand &amp; Dey, Debjani, 2021, First record of the ant genus Agraulomyrmex Prins, 1983 (Formicidae: Formicinae) from India, with description of a new species, pp. 428-436 in Oriental Insects 56 (3)</i> on pages 5-8, DOI: 10.1080/00305316.2021.2023056, http://zenodo.org/record/5832018