Tetramorium caldarium (Roger)

Type location Germany (Tetrogmus caldarius n. sp., Roger, 1857: 12, worker; Meinert, 1861: 331, male); junior synonyms hemisi (as variety of pusillum, Wheeler, 1922: 193, worker) from Zaïre, Niangara by H.O. Lang, in the stomach of a frog; minutum (Donisthorpe, 1942a: 30, queen) from Egypt and transformans (Tetramorium pauper st transformans, Santschi, 1914b: 104, worker) from Kenya (see Bolton, 1995) .

Roger's (1857) description is at and . Santschi's (1914b) description of transformans is at . Donisthorpe's (1942a) description of minutum is at .

Bolton's modern descriptions (1979, based primarily on New World specimens; 1980) are at and .

WORKER - TL 2.1-2.4 mm; with weak frontal carinae and little trace of antennal scrobes. Short, stout blunt hairs on all dorsal surfaces of the body. Colour yellow or light yellowish brown (Bolton, 1980, not illustrated).

A panglobal tramp species, which Bolton (1980) thought to be of African origin. The sole West African records which he listed were from Nigeria, at the savannah location of Mokwa (B. Lasebikan); and Ivory Coast, at ORSTOM (W.L. Brown).

In his blanket description, Bolton (1980) wrote of his suspicion that there are two closely similar species, differing particularly in the width between the frontal carinae at the level of the eyes. Specimens from East Africa and India had this separation as < 0.50 X HW, whereas most Old World and all New World specimens had HW > 0.50 HW. From the specimens shown below, it seems that another consistent feature of the type form is a uniformly dark gaster. In the Esat African & Saudi Arabia specimens the gaster has variably lighter areas.

Narrow-headed type forms - Congo Basin & Germany (tramp)

Wheeler (1922) wrote of Tetramorium pusillum Emery variety hemisi, new variety - WORKER TL 2.5-2.8 mm, agreeing closely with Emery's description of the typical pusillum in size, sculpture, and colouration, but with the basal third or fourth of the first gastric segment densely punctate and nearly opaque, and with the propodeal [epinotal] teeth acute, distinctly larger than the metasternal teeth. Fourteen workers from the stomach of a frog (Hemismus marmoratum) from Niangara (Lang & Chapin). The speciemns are shown in the photomontage collated from the AMNH Congo Expedition website.

The photomontage is of a specimen from Congo, Brazzaville, pitfall trap t1.15, 19.viii.2007, collected by Yves Braet & Eric Nzassi, 2007.

Other images can be seen in the folder at - Congo - .

The photomontage of a specimen from the Azores is collated from the http://www.antweb.org/specimen.do?name=casent0003150&shot=p1&project=.

See also the specimen from Reunion Is, shown at http://www.antweb.org/specimen.do?name=casent0125225&shot=p1&project=.

Egypt records - in HNS as Tetramorium minutum Donisthorpe (1942a) single queen from Siwa Oasis, collected by J Omer-Cooper, 17.vii.1935. Illustrated in the photomontage, which is collated from http://www.antweb.org/specimen.do?name=casent0102358

Broad-headed forms

The photomontage is of a specimen from Tanzania, Igire Hill, Mkomazi Game Reserve, 3°54.75' S 37°48.58' E, pkd collection from Heywoodia lucens, 10.i.1996, by G McGavin. Other images can be seen in the folder at -

The photomontage is of a specimen from Saudi Arabia, Farasan Islands, Major Farasan I., Red Sea, 25.ii.2005; 16°42' N, 42°11' E, collector Mostafa Sharaf.