Crematogaster (Crematogaster) brunneipennis André

Type location Sierra Leone (André, 1890: 323, worker & queen; Santschi, 1933b: 101, male) collector Mocquerys; subspecies omniparens (Forel, 1914d: 237, worker; Arnold, 1920a: 499, illustrated) from South Africa, and yorubosa (Santschi, 1933b: 102, worker) from Nigeria; all forms described (see Bolton, 1995) .

André's (1890) description is at Forel's (1914d) decription of omniparensis at Santschi's (1933b) description of the male and of yorubosa is at . Arnold (1920a) gave a translation of omniparens, this is at

As the type location of acaciae is Ethiopia and Bolton (1995) notes a finding listed by Collingwood (1985) as from Saudi Arabia, I include the following descriptive notes by Wheeler (1922) as an indication of the appearance of bruneipennis and suspect that, as usual with Crematogaster "species" the situation remains unclear, with gloriosa perhaps as a suspect attribution. It appears that, just as Wheeler was writing, Emery (1922e) revived acaciae as a species (with subspecies generosa, from South Africa, gloriosa from Zaïre, and victoriosa from Zimbabwe).

Wheeler noted - Crematogaster brunneipennis (Ern. André) subspecies acaciae (Forel) variety victoriosa (Santschi). Numerous workers from Zambi [Zaïre] (Bequaert), "nesting in a tree trunk." The typical (C. acaciae) was originally taken by Keller in Somaliland in the swollen spines of acacias. Concerning one of the other varieties (generosa, Santschi), Santschi wrote to me: "I received from Mr. G. Arnold of the Rhodesian Museum under the name of C. brunneipennis Ern. André variety omniparens Forel some workers which differ only in their deeper color from what I have called acaciae variety generosa. The female of the latter form is very close to that of brunneipennis Ern. André, but the wings are even darker. I believe that brunneipennis should be regarded as a subspecies of C. acaciae". That Santschi is correct in regarding both forms as cospecific is proved by a comparison of two cotype workers of brunneipennis from Sierra Leone (Mocquerys), sent me by André many years ago, with a cotype of acaciae received from Forel. Andre's workers are smaller, with longer antennal scapes, smoother and more polished thorax, with somewhat more circular and less cordate petiole, smaller and more slender and more pointed propodeal spines, and darker gaster and head, but the resemblances are so close in other respects that I cannot regard the differences as more than subspecific. As brunneipennis has priority of publication, acaciae must be reduced in rank and not brunneipennis, as Santschi supposes. Whether omniparens is to be retained as a distinct subspecies or is to be attached as a variety to acaciae, I am unable to determine.

The photomontage of omniparens is collated from http://mcz-28168.oeb.harvard.edu/mcz/FMPro?-DB=Image.fm&-Lay=web&-Format=images.htm&Species_ID=29114&-Find.

The photomontage is of a specimen from Ghana, collected by S Sky Stephens, 2006. Other images can be seen in the folders at - and