Hypoponera Santschi 1938
Creators: name: Eguchi, Katsuyuki
name: Viet, Bui Tuan
name: Yamane, Seiki
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2014
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Hymenoptera
Formicidae
Hypoponera

description: Hypoponera Santschi, 1938
Taxonomy. The genus Hypoponera is assigned to the tribe Ponerini (Bolton 2003).
Morphology. Workers of Vietnamese species have the following features (see also Schmidt & Shattuck 2014):
Worker monomorphic; head in full-face view subrectangular; frontal lobes horizontal, separated from each other by a longitudinal sulcus; antennal scrobe absent; anteromedian margin of clypeus convex; mandible elongatetriangular; its distinct apical tooth followed by a series of small teeth or serration on masticatory margin; basal portion of mandible without a distinct circular or near-circular pit or fovea dorsolaterally; antenna 12-segmented, gradually incrassate from segments III to XII; eye present, but often reduced, consisting of a single or a few ommatidia; eye located on the side of head close to the mandibular insertion; dorsal outline of mesosoma in lateral view continuous and straight, or interrupted between pronotum, mesonotum and propodeum; promesonotal suture completely separating pronotum from mesonotum; mesopleuron distinctly to faintly demarcated from mesonotum by a suture, and distinctly from metapleuron by a suture and/or groove; metanotal groove usually distinct dorsally; propodeum unarmed; orifice of propodeal spiracle round to elliptical; propodeal lobe absent; outer surface of middle tibia with fine normal pilosity only; apicoventral part of foretibia always without a simple spur behind a large pectinate spur; apicoventral part of mid and hind tibiae with a single pectinate spur; petiole without anterior peduncle; petiolar node squamiforem in lateral view high; subpetiolar process developed well as a lobe, anteriorly without a conspicuous round depression, posteroventrally without a pair of angles; girdling constriction between abdominal segments III and IV relatively distinct; abdominal sternite III with an anteroventral U-shaped ridge below helcium or a distinct anteroventral flange beneath helcium; sting well developed.
Differentiation. The worker of Hypoponera is in general appearance most similar to that of Ponera and Cryptopone. In the worker of Ponera, however, the subpetiolar process in lateral view has an anterior round depression (fenestra) and a pair of posteroventral acute angles. In the worker of Cryptopone the basal portion of mandible has a distinct circular fovea or elongate depression dorsolaterally, and the dorsal (outer) surface of middle tibia bears thickened peg-like setae among background pilosity. The worker of some large species are somewhat similar to that of Brachyponera, but in the latter the apicoventral part of hind tibia has two spurs (a large pectinate spur and a smaller, simple spur in front of the pectinate spur).
Vietnamese species (10 spp.).
H. silvestrii (Donishorpe, 1947). Type locality: Yen Bay, Tonkin [northern Vietnam]. H. sp. eg-1 (Ba Vi, Cuc Phuong, Pu Mat, Tam Dao, Tay Yen Tu, Van Ban). H. sp. eg-2 (Sa Pa, Tam Dao, Tay Yen Tu). H. sp. eg-3 (Ba Be, Cat Tien, Pu Mat, Tay Yen Tu, Van Ban). H. sp. eg-4 (Tay Yen Tu, Van Ban).
H. sp. eg-5 (Tay Yen Tu).
H. sp. eg-6 (Cat Tien).
H. sp. eg-7 (Van Ban).
H. sp. eg-8 (Cat Tien).
H. sp. eg-9 (Pu Mat).
Bionomics. Hypoponera spp. usually occur in well-developed forests and other wooded habitats. They nest in rotting logs and wood fragments, and in litter and soil.
description: Published as part of Eguchi, Katsuyuki, Viet, Bui Tuan & Yamane, Seiki, 2014, Generic Synopsis of the Formicidae of Vietnam (Insecta: Hymenoptera), Part II — Cerapachyinae, Aenictinae, Dorylinae, Leptanillinae, Amblyoponinae, Ponerinae, Ectatomminae and Proceratiinae, pp. 1-46 in Zootaxa 3860 (1) on page 34, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.3860.1.1, http://zenodo.org/record/287059