Dorylus (Dorylus) affinis Shuckard
Type location Gambia (Shuckard, 1840c: 316, male; Emery,
1901c: 189, worker; van Boven, 1975: 189, queen) from Gambia
River; subspecies aegyptiacus (Mayr, 1865: 76. male;
Emery, 1915g: 3, worker; junior synonym abyssinicus,
Emery, 1895j: 717, worker, from Ethiopia) from Egypt;
denudatus (Santschi, 1910g: 742,
illustrated, male) from Niger, loewyi (Forel, 1907b: 202, male) and
its variety exilis (Santschi, 1914b: 59, male) from Tanzania;
hirsutus (Santschi, 1917c: 20) from Ethiopia; parapsidalis
from Malawi (Santschi, 1917c: 20, male), pulliceps
(Santschi, 1917c: 19, male) from Ivory Coast, collected by Lohier; sudanicus (Santschi, 1917c: 19,
male) from Congo; and, ugandensis from Uganda (Santschi, 1914b:
59, male); junior synonyms brevinodosus (Mayr, 1862; 737, worker;
synonymy Emery, 1901c: 189) from Ghana, Quittah and Accra, by Dr Brauns; and planiceps
(Haldeman, 1849b: 204, male; synonymy Emery, 1895j: 719) from " West
Africa"; unavailable name badior (Santschi,1939b: 237,
male) from Zaïre; all forms known (see Bolton (1995)
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Shuckard's (1840c) description is at
 .
Haldeman's (1849b) description of the male planiceps
(spelt plancipes) is at
 .
Mayr's (1865) description of the male aegyptiacus is at
 .
Emery (1901c: 189, summarised and illustrated the worker
polymorphism, this is at
 .
Emery's (1877b) description of the brevinodosus is at
 .
Emery (1895j: 720) gave a full, illustrated, description of the
male, plus abyssinicus; this is at
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Emery (1895j) provided the images (right) drawn from the types of
brevinodosus in Mayr's collection, with a description at
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Forel's (1907b) description of the loewyi male is at
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Santschi's (1910g) description of exilis is at
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Santschi's (1910g) description of denudatus is at
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Santschi's (1914b) description of ugandensis is at
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Santschi (1917c) constructed a key to the males of the numerous
varieties already known by that time; this is at
 .
Santschi's (1939b) description of badior is at
from Zimbabwe. J. van Boven (1975: 189) gave notes on the
queen and gave a better illustration (right) of the major; see
.
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 A
very widely distributed species from throughout tropical Africa;
West African records include Senegal (Dakar, F.
Silvestri), Guinea Bissau (Bamabaya, by Lucas), Guinea
(Conakry and Camayenne, F. Silvestri), Liberia (Cape
Palmas, by Savage), Ghana (at Kitta and Accra, H. Brauns)
and Cameroun (by Conradt).
Bernard (1952) reported it as "frequent" in Lamotte's
collections on the Mt. Nimba massif, Guinea:- T44 (Nion);
T42, Mount Tô, Camp I, 1600 m (the richest number of
workers). He noted it had a dark mahogany colour and head shape
like that of race loewyi and puncturation and petiole form
of variety pulliceps.
Arnold (1915: 120) had the following description -
"The minors of this species are very similar to those of
helvolus and brevipennis; helvolus is more
strongly and closely punctured on the head, and does not reach to
such a large size in majors or maxima. From brevipennis,
the workers of this species can be distinguished only with
difficulty, the main distinction being the shape of the petiole,
as given in the key above [petiole not much wider behind than in
front; brevipennis wider behind].
TL of maxima 10-11 mm. Head, from 3.3 mm long x 2.6 mm wide, to
3.7 mm long x 2.8 mm wide.
 The
colour is like that of helvolus, the abdomen is lighter
than the thorax. Head shining, mandibles finely reticulate and
sparsely punctured; dorsum of the pro- and mesonotum smooth,
propodeum reticulate and dull, the opacity being due to a
microscopic rugulosity. The puncturation of the gaster is
shallower and less abundant than on the head. The petiole is
duller than the thorax, and the puncturation feebler and less
regular. The gaster is shining, shallowly and sparsely punctured.
All the punctures bear short hairs, intermixed with which on the
gaster are some longer semi-erect hairs. There are a few pilous
hairs on the ventral surface of the gaster, the clypeus, mandibles
and pygidium; the hairs on the legs are comparatively longer and
more abundant than in helvolus.
The head is sub-rectangular, the posterior margin deeply excised,
the sides more or less feebly bisinuate. The mandible is acute at
the apex, with a pre-apical tooth at about the middle of the inner
margin, and a rudiment of a sub-apical tooth. The frontal carinae
are a little separated in front, but converge abruptly above the
antennal sockets, and each ends in a sharp spine pointing
obliquely backwards. The petiole is wider than long, widest
posteriorly; it is comparatively larger than in helvolus.
The tooth-like projections of the pygidium are not quite so
prominent, otherwise similar to helvolus.
Worker minor - TL 8-5.5 mm. Head, 2.6 mm long x 3 mm wide, to 1.7
mm long x l.4 mm wide. The posterior margin of the head is less
deeply excised, the sub-apical tooth of the mandible larger,
nearly equal to the pre-apical. The puncturation is finer, and the
pubescence a little more distinct, and the colour lighter than in
the major.
Worker minima - TL 3.5 mm or less. In these the anterior margin
of the clypeus is more projecting, the frontal carinae are closer
together and less acute posteriorly, or in examples 3 mm long,
with the spinous processes entirely obsolete. Antennae with 7-8
joints, all the joints of the funiculus, except the 1st and last,
much wider than long. The whole body is shining, and the colour
dirty ochreous.
I am not aware of this species having been recorded so far from
the region (Southern Africa) dealt with in this work, but have
included it as it may perhaps be found in the future within the
species, but has been recorded from the southern Belgian Congo,
(G.A. coll.)". |
 Israel
major - from Israel, Hod Hasharon, Tel Aviv, 23.x.1972, collector
J Kugler, sent to BT by Armin Ionescu, Tel Aviv University. With
the shorter head, more convex posterior angles, finer sculpture,
etc, which appear to characterise brevinodosus and aegyptiacus/abyssinicus
- i.e. the northern forms.
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 Israel
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Other images can be seen in the folder at -
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