The Ants of Africa

The Ants of Africa
Genus Pheidole
Pheidole jordanica Saulcy

megacephala-group - Major - head width and length equal or subequal; mandibles relatively slender, with at most reduced teeth or denticles; postpetiole trapezoidal but without elongated lateral prominences. Minors without or variable development of a nuchal collar.

megacephala-subgroup - TL > 3.3 mm

Pheidole jordanica Saulcy

Major - Minor - Type location Jordan (Saulcy, 1874: 17, major & minor); junior synonyms obtusa (Ph. megacephala var obtusa, Stitz, 1917: 340, illustrated, major; synonymy Finzi, 1936: 171) from Egypt, and schmitzi (Forel, 1911h: 455, major, minor & queen) from Israel; major, minor and queen described (see Bolton, 1995).

Saulcy's (1874) description is at . Emery (1889a) had the note Forel's (1911h) description of schmitzi is at ). Emery (1915j: 233) gave an illustrated description and comparision with sinaitica; this is at Stitz's (1917) description of obtusa is at . Finzi (1936: 161) gave notes, these are at .

With the receipt of specimens from El Minia, Egypt, Mostaf Sharaf and I have separated Pheidole laticeps (Mayr) as a distinct species.

{Pheidole jordanica obtusa} From the Forel (1911h) description of schmitzi, it appears that there is a transverse welt on the mesonotum and the postpetiole is rhomboidal; if so, the species is likely to fall into the teneriffana species-group. The photographs of minor workers from Iran, below, show a rhomboidal postpetiole and show longitudinal rugae on the genae similar to those on the Pheidole teneriffana minor. The anterior clypeal margin is distinctly produced forward with a straight margin; the clypeus also appears to be bicarinate.

Collingwood (1985: 253) separated jordanica in his key as having the "Postpetiole longer than broad,about 0.2 X HW; funiculus segment 2 scarcely longer than broad". Collingwood & Agosti (1996: 323) added - Measurements SI 0.675; HW/PPW 0.227 (PPW = postpetiole width).

Reported from Sudan but the location was Khartoum (Karavaiev, 1911), and therefore it is not a true sub-saharan species.

Egypt records - recorded from Cairo by Emery (1889a: 442); junior synonym Pheidole megacephala r. obtusa Stitz (1917: 340, illustrated, soldier). Menozzi (1929e: 125) workers from Sinai oases at Feiran and Wadi Tarfa, collected by F S Bodenheimer. Alfieri (1931) listed one finding from Charkieh Province, Senchawa, 26.x.1925; also in Mohamed et al (2001).

Mohamad (1979) thesis had - Egypt (Det. Crawley, 1927) (Coll.Alf.) Gebel Elba, 22.i.1933 (Coll.Min.) Abu Mena, 8.iv.1954; Benha, 6.ii.1975; Cairo, 16.iii.,29.iv.1975; Alexandria, 27.iii.1975 (Coll.Ain.) Egypt (Det. Crawley, 1927) (Coll.Soc.)

{Pheidole jordanica major} The photomontage is of a major collected in Egypt, at Nagh Ghalalab, by Mostafa Sharaf. Other images can be seen in the folder at - .

{Pheidole jordanica minor} The photomontage is of a minor collected in Egypt, collected in Nagh Ghalalab, by Mostafa Sharaf.

{Pheidole jordanica minor} The photomontage is of a minor collected in Egypt, from El Minia, by Mahmoud Fadl ali. Other images can be seen in the folder at - .

{Pheidole jordanica minor} The photomontage is of minors collected in Iran, from Gonbad, by Omida Paknia, August 2004. Other images can be seen in the folder at - .

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