Polyrhachis latispina Emery

Type location Zaïre (Polyrhachis atalanta, Wheeler, 1922: 263, illustrated, queen; name preoccupied so renamed as latispina by Emery, 1925: 206), from Kisangani (Stanleyville), collected by Lang & Chapin; junior synonym iperpunctata ( Menozzi, 1942: 181, illustrated, worker) from Fernando Po I., worker holotype collected at Musola, by Eidmann,. Also recorded from Eala, Zaïre, by H.J. Bredo (Bolton, 1973b: 309); female and workers described .

Wheeler's (1922) illustrated description of the queen is at . Menozzi's (1942) illustrated description of iperpunctata is at . Bolton's modern description (1973b) is at .

WORKER - TL 9.4-11.2 mm.

At Musola they were nesting in hollow petioles and fallen leaves of a tree fern, using coarse carton to close gaps.

The photomontage is of a specimen from Kenya, compiled from http://www.antweb.org/specimen.do?name=casent0178251&shot=p1&project=null.

Note: I suspect this is a closely related species rather than the Congo Basin type. Overall it is well below the size range reported by Bolton (1973b); from the Antweb photos - HL 2.07, HW 1.75, CI 85; SL 1.83, SI 104 (?); PW 1.24. It also differs in a number of ways. For instance the type has a reticulate-punctate gaster, with overlying fine dense longitudinal rugulation - this is wholly shiny. The pronotal sculpture is descibed by Bolton as "heavily sculptured", this appears quite weakly sculptured. The sculpturation of the petiole also differs. The type has parts of the legs and apices of the funiculi that are yellow-brown, this is wholly black.