The Ants of Africa
Genus Pheidole
Pheidole nigritella Bernard

termitophila group - Major - head longer than wide by at least 25%; mandibles very stout with dentate border and distinct apical teeth; clypeus with at least a shallow central notch; postpetiole with distinct lateral prominences; minor head square; major and minor with relatively swollen three-segmented club

{Pheidole nigritella}

Pheidole nigritella Bernard

Soldier - return to key Minor - return to key {link to the Hymenoptera Name Server} Type location Guinea (Bernard, 1952, illustrated) from Mt. Nimba, 3 soldiers and 9 workers, from three forest locations; Ziéla, F 80 Gouéla, B8-10 Zouépo, 1215 m (Lamotte); soldier and worker described (see Bolton, 1995) .

From the description, apart from the form of the head in profile (not described for bequaerti), this seems probably to be the junior synonym of Pheidole bequaerti.

{Pheidole nigritella}

Bernard's (1952) description translated is -
SOLDIER - TL 3.6-3.8, HL 1.5, HW 1.15; head and thorax pitch brown, often black posteriorly, petiole and gaster pure black, shiny. Head matt, finely and entirely recticulo-striated, with fine reticulation between the striations. Thorax and abdomen smooth. Fine yellow hairs common on the head and body. Appendages yellow-brown, short and thick, save the antennae which are slender by comparison with related species. Head parallel sided, slightly enlarged posteriorly. Clypeus straight, brown, puncturated, a little concave anteriorly but frontal area without a median carina. Frontal groove well developed large on the posterior part. Antennae slender, segments longer than wide. Mandibles brown, finely and regularly striated. In profile, prothorax very convex, metanotal groove very wide. Petiole small and elevated. Postpetiole shiny, finely puncturated, slightly wider than long. Head illustrated in scanned photocopy of photo (left).

WORKER - TL 2.0-2.1; black, very shiny, puncturation fine and serrated, appendages brown. Head slightly longer than wide, very rounded posteriorly; occiput is straight, bordered and wide. Antennae slender, in the funiculus segments 2 and 3 are equal, three times longer than wide, segment 4 twice as long as wide. Prothorax as convex as the soldier; propodeum puncturate except on anterior third. Petiole slender, node less elevated than that of the soldier. Postpetiole as the soldier. All body parts are more elongated than those of the other minute Pheidole in the termitophila group (after Bernard, 1952).

Bernard (1952) described this as the only black species among the minute Pheidole of Africa, other than Ph. capensis from southern areas.

{Pheidole nigritella minor}What I adjudge to be a minor of this species is shown in the photomontage of a specimen from Ghana, collected by Sky Stephens, 2006. Other images can be seen in the folder at - {original description}

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© 2007 - Brian Taylor CBiol FIBiol FRES
11, Grazingfield, Wilford, Nottingham, NG11 7FN, U.K.

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