Zasphinctus wilsoni Hita Garcia 2017
Creators: name: Hita Garcia, Francisco
name: Gómez, Kiko
name: Keller, Roberto A.
name: Schurian, Bernhard
name: Economo, Evan P.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2025
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Hymenoptera
Formicidae
Zasphinctus
Zasphinctus wilsoni

description: Zasphinctus wilsoni Hita Garcia, 2017
Figs 3 H, 4 H, 5 H, 6 H, 7 H, 8 H, 10 H, 11 H, 12 H, 13 H, 14 H, 15 H, 16 H, 17 H, 18 H, 19 H, 20 H, 21 H, 24
Type material examined.
Holotype • Pinned worker, Mozambique, Sofala, Gorongosa National Park, 2 km S Chitengo, - 18.99472, 34.35769, 40 m, secondary forest, leaf litter, collection code ANTC 37418, 30. V. 2012 (G. D. Alpert) (MCZC: MCZ-ENT 00512764).
Cybertype • Dataset was published in Hita Garcia et al. (2017 a) and consists of the volumetric raw data (in DICOM format), as well as 3 D PDFs and 3 D rotation videos of scans of the head, mesosoma, metasoma, and the full body of the physical holotype (MCZC: MCZ-ENT 00512764) in addition to montage photos illustrating head in full-face view, profile, and dorsal views of the body. The data was deposited at Dryad and can be freely accessed as virtual representation of the holotype (Hita Garcia et al. 2017 c, http://dx.doi.org/10.5061/dryad.4s3v1). In addition to the cybertype data at Dryad, we also provided a freely accessible 3 D surface model of the holotype at Sketchfab (https://skfb.ly/6sPwN).
Non-type material examined.
• Five workers from: Mozambique: Cabo Delgado, Parque Nacional Quirimbas, Mareja Reserve, miombo woodland, ex soil, - 12.84778, 40.16542, 180 m, collection code BLF 38248, 25. II. 2016 (B. L. Fisher; Arthropod Team) (CASC: CASENT 0779283, CASENT 0779285) • Zambezia, Mount Mabu, rainforest, ex soil, - 16.34888, 36.4081, 375 m, collection code BLF 38954, 12. III. 2016 (B. L. Fisher; Arthropod Team) (CASC: CASENT 0779844) • Zambezia, Mount Mabu, rainforest, ex soil, - 16.34888, 36.4081, 375 m, collection code BLF 39161, 24. III. 2016 (B. L. Fisher; Arthropod Team) (CASC: CASENT 0781222) • Zambezia, Mount Mabu, rainforest, ex soil, - 16.34888, 36.4081, 375 m, collection code BLF 39209, 25. III. 2016 (B. L. Fisher; Arthropod Team) (CASC: CASENT 0781285).
Differential worker diagnosis.
With characters of the Z. obamai group plus the following: body size significantly much smaller (HL 0.61; WL 0.87); lateral arms of hypostomal carina strongly diverging anteriorly, relatively thick, and strongly angulate at widest points (Fig. 8 H); postgenal sulcus weakly impressed and running halfway to occipital margin (Fig. 8 F); postoccipital margin in ventral view with anterior outline moderately or weakly and irregularly defined; anterolateral projections angulate (Fig. 8 H); pleural endophragmal pit very weakly developed and inconspicuous (Fig. 10 H); subpetiolar process of petiole (AS II) in profile with thickened anterior and ventral margins and weak concavity without differentiated fenestra (Fig. 13 H); posterior end of abdominal segment III in ventral view with transverse groove weak to absent, instead with irregular groves and rugosity (Fig. 16 H); prora in anteroventral view very weakly developed with almost absent lateroventral margins (Fig. 16 H); surface sculpture on genae mostly smooth and shiny, on cephalic dorsum mostly reticulate-rugose (Figs 4 H, 5 H, 19 H, 20 H); general surface sculpture on mesosoma and metasoma mostly smooth and shiny with abundant piliferous foveae, mesosoma and petiole laterally mostly reticulate-punctate, hypopygidium reticulate-rugose (Figs 20 H, 21 H).
Measurements and indices.
Morphometric data is based on the singleton holotype from Mozambique and can be seen in Table 2, Suppl. material 3.
Distribution and biology.
Fortunately, our knowledge of the distribution of Z. wilsoni has increased since its original description. Whereas in Hita Garcia et al. (2017 a) it was only known from its type locality, the Gorongosa National Park, now it also known from two additional localities considerably further northeast, namely Quirimbas in Cabo Delgado and Mount Mabu in Zambezia. The species was collected in litter in Gorongosa and in soil in the other two localities. To our surprise it seems that Z. wilsoni is relatively flexible in its habitat requirements since it was collected in secondary dry forest, miombo woodland and rainforest.
description: Published as part of Hita Garcia, Francisco, Gómez, Kiko, Keller, Roberto A., Schurian, Bernhard & Economo, Evan P., 2025, A never-ending story: updated 3 D cyber-taxonomic revision of the ant genus Zasphinctus Wheeler (Hymenoptera, Formicidae, Dorylinae) for the Afrotropical region, pp. 1-55 in ZooKeys 1223 on pages 1-55, DOI: 10.3897/zookeys.1223.131238