Calyptomyrmex stellatus Santschi

Type location Gabon (Santschi, 1915c: 255, illustrated, worker), collector F. Faure; holotype worker only known specimen (see Bolton, 1995) .

Bolton (1981a) described it as having uniquely bizarre pilosity. On the first gastral tergite these are scale-like and have the outer edge with 15-10 projecting short filaments, giving the margin a fringed or ray-like appearance, i.e. stellated.
WORKER - TL 2.8, HL 0.72, HW 0.71, SL 0.44, PW 0.48 Bolton's modern description (1987) is at

Santschi's (1915c) description is -
WORKER TL 2.1; head distinctly longer than wide, some one third narrower anteriorly than the posterior fifth. Occipital border straight medially, with strongly rounded angles. Mandibles shiny, finely punctate, with 6-7 teeth, the first more distinct. Clypeus vertically bicarinate on lobe, which is deeply scalloped, to give two strong anteriorly facing teeth. Frontal carinae not covering all the scrobe. Frontal area smooth and shiny, flat, continued as a strong carina reaching the centre of the head. Eyes of some 10 facets. Scrobe quite deep, reaching the posterior angle of the head, finely punctate. Antennae 12-segmented; scape dilated in the distal half; funiculus segments 10 and 11 slightly wider than long, segment 12 a little longer than the rest put together. Promesonotum convex, anterior border transverse, angles slightly flared. Propodeum dorsum border, concave, longer than the declivity. Petiole node slightly higher than the length of the peduncle; seen from above and in front that has a a small tubercle; node with transverse oval dorsum, twice as wide as long. Postpetiole slightly larger, wider than long, without ventral tooth. Gaster rounded and convex, truncated anteriorly.
Colour red yellow; head and thorax slightly darker. Sides of gaster smooth and shiny. Neck of pronotum punctate and shiny, rest matte. Head, alitrunk dorsum and pedicel densely puncturate with numerous punctules (smaller and more widely spaced than those of nummuliticus) each with a decumbent, squamiform, oval hair with frayed edges - appearing like a star with about 15 rays. On the head, edge of scape and legs these hairs are smaller and more circular. No other hairs are found on the body but the mandibles, edge of clypeus, dorsal thorax, gastral apex, internal border of femora and tarsi have some fine silky hairs. Tarsi and antennae pubescent. Gaster very finely rugose and matte with the same stellate hairs.
A single specimen was collected in Gabon, by F. Faure.