Cataglyphis new species, ex Alain Lenoir

Type location Burkino Faso, Bobo Dioulasso, 11°10'N 4°18W, ex Alain Lenoir; range of workers from largest to smallest seen. In bicolor species-group of Agosti (1990) .

Mike Lush, whose collection of apparently very similar specimens in Gambia is shown below, suggests this may be the same as the Santschi (1929b: 46) description of Cataglyphis bicolor F. st. nodus n. var. oasium

Karavaiev's (1912b) description of sudanicus is at . Santschi's (1929b: 46) description of Cataglyphis bicolor F. st. nodus n. var. oasium is at .

One of the species studied by Dahbi, Hefetz & Lenoir (2008) - http://irbi.univ-tours.fr//UIEIS/Publis%20AL/Dahbi2008-BSE.pdf

The photomontage (right) is of a major specimen from Burkino Faso, 11°07.015 N 4°23.286 W, elev 28 m; 2006 & 2007, two colonies collector Alain Lenoir.

Dimensions of major - AL = 5 mm (median centre line); HW = 2.52; HL = 2.62; CI = 0.96 (HW X 100/HL; EL (maximum eye diameter) = 0.65; EI = 26 (EL X 100/HW) SL = 2.73; SI = 108 (SL X 100/HW)

Petiole profile smoothly domed with little difference between the anterior and posterior curves, with distinct anterior ventral triangular process; no erect hairs on propodeum, a few on the posteror-dorsal corner of the petiole; a pair of minute erect hairs on mesonotum dorsum, a few such on pronotum; three-four pairs on each side of midline of occiput-vertex, none on dorsum of the gaster, all such hairs are whitsih or colourless; sculpturation of head and alitrunk apparently coarser than bicolor ss; legs obviously entitrely dark black-brown; hind tibia with sparse short dark pubescence and row of short setae; maxillary palps with longish curved hairs on inner margins (not outer as in bicolor) and fewer on the apical two segments; underside of head with no erect hairs behind psammophore hairs.
This species is included in the paper - Dahbi, A., Hefetz, A. & Lenoir, A. (2008) Chemotaxonomy of some Cataglyphis ants from Morocco and Burkina Faso. Biochemical Systematics and Ecology, xxx, 1-9.

Agosti (1990) had a separation that, posssibly, was - petiole nodiform; gaster raised in locomotion (guessed); petiole anterodorsal domed, in lateral view whole dorsum of petiole rounded, propodeum not raised, EI < 28, CI < 97; bicolor-group - striking monophasic variation in workers with AL from < 5 mm to < 2mm. He (page 1477) refers to bicolor-group from on the beach in the tropics, citing the Ivory Coast, but later (page 1478) gave bicolor as bicoloured workers with appressed white to yellow pubescence on the hind tibiae. Under the setipes-complex, large workers (AL < 5 mm) he noted bicoloured with thick, bristle-like black pubescence on the hind tibiae; stating the distribution includes Ghana.

Photomontages of the polymorphism are shown on this link.

Other images can be seen in the folder at - .