Studies on an Enigmatic Blepharidatta Wheeler Population (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) from the Brazilian Caatinga
<em>Blepharidatta </em>is a rare Neotropical ant genus formed by predatory species whose small colonies nest in soil or leaf-litter. A population of <em>Blepharidatta</em> that presents affinities with the Cerrado species, <em>Blepharidatta conops</em> Kempf, was...
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| Autores principales: | , , , |
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| Formato: | article |
| Lenguaje: | EN |
| Publicado: |
Universidade Estadual de Feira de Santana
2014
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| Materias: | |
| Acceso en línea: | https://doaj.org/article/aeb2442aad6042bfa92ced805f6291a2 |
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| Sumario: | <em>Blepharidatta </em>is a rare Neotropical ant genus formed by predatory species whose small colonies nest in soil or leaf-litter. A population of <em>Blepharidatta</em> that presents affinities with the Cerrado species, <em>Blepharidatta conops</em> Kempf, was found in the Caatinga biome, at the “Reserva Particular do Patrimônio Natural Serra das Almas” (RPPNSA), in Crateús (State of Ceará, northeastern Brazil). The aim of our study was to obtain information on nest architecture, size and composition of colonies, foraging behavior, and female castes morphology in this newly found population, and to compare it with other <em>Blepharidatta</em> species, particularly <em>B. conops. </em>The results show that <em>Blepharidatta</em> sp. and <em>B. conops</em> share key features of their biology like basic nest architecture, diet and foraging behavior, monogyny, and ergatoid queens with a phragmotic head. However, marked differences were also found in queen head and mesosoma morphology, nest architecture, colony size, and queen location in the nest. Two mutually exclusive hypotheses are discussed. The <em>Blepharidatta</em> population found in the RPPNSA would represent a new species, possibly endemic to the Caatinga biome or this population would represent one extreme of the phenotypic variations observed in populations forming <em>B. conops</em> species. |
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