Camponotus (Myrmosericus) rufoglaucus (Jerdon) - Africa forms

Main species page Type locality India (Formica Rufo-glauca, Jerdon, 1851: 124, worker) Carnatic
Africa form (subspecies)
latericius (Camponotus (Myrmosericus) rufoglaucus Jerd. r. latericius n. stirps, Stitz, 1923: 165, minor worker) Namibia, Neitas Farm - see below
syphax (Camponotus (Myrmosericus) rufoglaucus subspecies syphax new subspecies, Wheeler, 1922: 246, minor & major workers, see below) Zaïre - see below
zulu (Camponotus (Myrmosericus) rufoglaucus Jerd. sou-esp. zulu n. subsp., Emery, 1895h: 50, minor & major workers) South Africa, Natal, M Weitzecker - see below
unavailable names
chaboti (Camponotus (Myrmosericus) rufoglaucus Jerd. st. controversus Sants., var. chaboti n. var., Santschi, 1925h: 167, minor & major workers & queen) from Angola - see below
miniata (Camponotus rufoglaucus Jerd. race flavo-marginata Mayr, var. miniata n. var., Arnold, 1947: 136, workers) from Zambia - see below
vertex (C. (Myrmosericus) rufoglaucus Jerdon stirps cinctellus Gerst. v. vertex n. v., Santschi, 1935a: 280, worker & queen) Zaïre collected at Luluaborg, 26.i.1912, by P. Callewaert - see below
minor & major workers & queen described (see Bolton, 1995)

For the present I have separated zanzibaricus (Camponotus rufoglaucus Jerd. subsp. zanzibaricus n. sbsp., Forel, 1911e: 287, minor worker) Zanzibar; as differing so greatly as to appear to be a separate species - see below.

Emery (1895h) had subspecies zulu as larger than type, tibiae flatter almost as eugeniae but scapes less compressed than latter; pubescence golden; TL major 9-9.5 mm; minor TL 7 mm. His descriptions and a key to the forms from India, the circum-Mediterranean area and Africa is at . His description of zulu is extracted at .

Forel's (1911e) description of zanzibaricus is at . Viehmeyer's (1914c) description of flavopilosus is at . Santschi's (1916b) naming of controversus is at . Stitz's (1923) description of latericius is at . Santschi's (1925h) description of chaboti is at . Santschi's (1935a) description of vertex is at . Arnold's (1947) description of miniata is at .

African dark forms (note: the apparently exaggerated magenta tint of all Antweb images hinders colour separations, so this is tentative on my part)

The photomontage of a major worker of vertex is collated from http://www.antweb.org/specimen.do?name=casent0911761.

The photomontage of a minor worker of vertex is collated from http://www.antweb.org/specimen.do?name=casent0911762.

The photomontage of a major worker of zulu is collated from http://www.antweb.org/specimen.do?name=casent0905351.

The photomontage of a minor worker of zulu is collated from http://www.antweb.org/specimen.do?name=casent0905352.

Oxford University Museum specimens

Camponotus (Myrmosericus) rufoglaucus B Taylor det.	Congo E Zassi 12-t-5	6-7.ii.2008 Lésio-Louna 03°20'12.0" S 015°28'43.6" E	Village Mah; 24h pitfall trap	1
Camponotus (Myrmosericus) rufoglaucus B Taylor det.	Rwanda G Bizimungu	2005 Bicumbi 1.9966667 S 30.3497222 E	from a coffee plantation	1
Camponotus (Myrmosericus) rufoglaucus B Taylor det.	Sudan A Omer S 1-25	2005-6 Wad Medani 14.4 N 33.5333333 E	Bentoe	3
Camponotus (Myrmosericus) rufoglaucus B Taylor det.	Sudan Awatif Omer 2013.02.39	Damazeen 11˚47'09" N 34˚20'12" E	minor workers	2

The photomontage is of a major worker from Congo, Réserve de Lésio-Louna; collected by Eric Zassi.

The photomontage is of a media worker, appearing to match the type form, from Sudan, Khartoum, collector Awatif Omer (Sudan 25). 

The photomontage is of a minor specimen from Sudan, Khartoum, collector Awatif Omer, 2006, Sudan 25.

The photomontage is of a minor specimen from Sudan, Khartoum, collector Awatif Omer, 2006, Sudan 25.

The specimens in these field photographs were taken in Pretoria, South Africa, by Joan Young; nos 100-9861, 100-9862 and 101-1069

The photomontage is of miniata workers collated from http://www.antweb.org/specimen.do?name=casent0903508

The photomontage of a major worker of vertex is collated from http://www.antweb.org/specimen.do?name=casent0911761.

The photomontage of a minor worker of vertex is collated from http://www.antweb.org/specimen.do?name=casent0911762.

The photomontage of a minor worker of latericius is collated from http://www.antweb.org/specimen.do?name=focol2480.

Wheeler's description of Camponotus (Myrmosericus) rufoglaucus subspecies syphax, new subspecies is -
MINOR WORKER - very similar to the subspecies zulu Emery from Natal and quite as large, the largest specimens measuring fully 9 mm, but not more slender than other forms of the species. The scapes and tibiae are distinctly compressed, the former as in C. eugeniae Forel, but not so broad. Propodeum evenly arcuate in profile, without distinct base and declivity. Pubescence dull yellowish, not very long, slightly golden on the gaster of large individuals, only feebly converging at the mid-dorsal line on the posterior portions of the second and third segments. Color brownish black, the legs a little paler, the funiculi, cheeks, clypeus, mandibles, and tarsi castaneous. Gastric segments with very narrow, dull-yellowish posterior margins.

The photomontage is of a cotype of Camponotus rufoglaucus syphax from Zaïre. The original photographs, together with enlarged images, are from the MCZ, Harvard University, website at - MCZ link.

The photomontage is of a cotype of Camponotus rufoglaucus syphax from Zaïre. The original photographs, together with enlarged images, are from the Smithsonian Institute website at -http://ripley.si.edu/ent/nmnhtypedb/public/specimeninfopage.cfm?publicconsumption=1&typespecimenID=651.

On syphax, Wheeler (1922) wrote: "Numerous specimens from Zambi (type locality) and Boma (Lang, Chapin, and J. Bequaert). The Zambi specimens are from three colonies, two of which bear the following notes - "Ants forming numerous small craters in the white sand (PI. XXII, fig. 1, right below). Only a few individuals were seen outside the nest before noon. The nest extended to a depth of 50 cm below the surface." "Nest in the rotten base of a Hyphaene. No larvae nor pupae could be seen, though there were certainly as many as 1000 workers in the colony. The nest was loosely arranged in the soft, decomposing mass." Bequaert says of the specimens from Boma that they "run very swiftly and were nesting in the road." Workers of this ant were sent to Prof. Emery, who compared them with his cotypes of the subspecies zulu. He pronounced them to belong to a new subspecies "with the pubescence on the gaster much more parallel and less sinuous."

The photomontage is of the zanzibaricus type (minor) worker collated from http://www.antweb.org/specimen.do?name=casent0910329.
Quite clearly this is not a rufoglaucus form, with a very different alitrunk profile, different petiole scale and a head shape, and, a totally different colour pattern.