40 PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL MUSEUM

AST.13. ANTS

FROM HONDURAS AND GUATEMAT^ MANX.

41 epinotal declivity. Peduncle of petiole n little longer than the node; node in profile slightly higher than long, abrupt in front and behind and nearly iiat above; from above, as long as broad, feebly convex at sides and straight at front and

,posterior borders.

Postpetiole

much

broaderthanpetioleand morethan twiceas broad as long,longitudinallyconcave atmiddle.

Opaque.

Head

andthorax punctateandrugulose,epinotumtrans- versely seriolate; petiole, postpetiole and gastercribately punctate.

Mandibles,legs, and antennal scapes densely punctate.

Subappressed squamiform hairs moderately abundant on head, body, and appendages, sparse on epinotum; longer, clavate hairs on outer borderofantennal scapes and the apical portions of legs;

coarser, clavate hairs regularly arranged on head, thorax, and ab- domen.

Brownish red; legs paler.

Female.

—

^Length,2.90

^mm.

Thorax and scutellum rugulose, the former more strongly than in the worker. Epinotal spines a little shorter than in workers.

Wings

strongly infuscated.

Male.

—

^{Length. 2.80}

mm.

Head, excluding mandibles, longer than broad, shallowly and broadly excised behind, posterior portion of sides truncate. Cly- peus broad,roundedat sidesposteriorto middle,ver}-feeblyconcave at anterior border. Mandibles well developed, acute at tips, their blades strongly concave. Eyeselongateoval,convex,slightlyshorter thantheir distance to occipital corners. Ocelli large. Frontal lobes prominent, truncateapically. Antennae 13-jointed. first jointtwice asbroad atbaseas atapex,twiceas broad andslightly longerthan the secondjoint,whichisabout halfaslongas the third, joints3-12 elongate, subcylindrical, terminal joint longer than the penulti- mate, but shorterthan thetwo precedingjoints together. Mesotho- rax shallowly, longitudinally impressed at middle, shallowly con- cave behind. Scutellum about as long as broad, little convex, im- pressed at middle of posterior border. Base and declivity of epi-

notum

equal in length; spines bluntly triangular, a little longer than broad at base, declivity narrowly margined at sides. Petiole elongate, thenode roundedabove; fromabove, a littlebroaderthan long, rounded at sides and straight in front; anteroventral spine longandpointed, directedforward. Postpetioletransverseandtwice asbroad as petiole. Gaster rather strongly narrowedbehind. Ex- ternal valves of genitalialong and slender, narrowly rounded api- cally. Legslong andveryslender.

Gastershining, pleurae, in part,andpetiolarnodefeebly shining, the rest opaque.

Head

and thorax densely punctate and rugulose.

42

PROCEEDINGS OF

THE

NATIONAL,

MUSEUM.

vol.61.

Petiole densely and postpetiole more shallowly punctate. Legs finely and densely punctate. Gaster smooth.

Hairs fine,long andblack on head andbody, shorter and semire- cumbent onlegs.

Black,legs fulvous, wingsstrongly infuscated.

Type

locality.

— Honduras

:Lombardia;

San

Juan Pueblo.

Cohjpes.—Q-3it.No.24460,U.S.N.M.

RHOPALOTHRIX (OCTOSTRUMA) BARBERI, new species.

Worker.

—

Length. 1.75

mm.

Head, excluding mandibles, barely broader than long, half as broad at clypeus as at occiput, posterior portion of sides not dis- tinctly truncated, occipital corners rounded, occipital border shal- lowly concave at middle. Mandibular blades with four elongate, triangular teeth, tips acute. Clypeus as broad as long, truncate in front,posterior bordernarrowly rounded. Antennalscapes extend- inglessthantwo-thirdsthe distance to occipital corners, theirwidth atbase equalto three-eighths theirlength, expanded and narrowly rounded at base; first funicular joint one and one-third times as long as broad; joints 2-5 strongly transverse, joint six less trans- verse; terminal jointnearly as long as the remainderof funiculus.

Eyes small and feebly convex. Pro-mesonotum rather flat in pro-

file; from above, evenly rounded atsides. Mesoepinotal impression very distinct. Base of epinotum flat, sides straight, spines

much

shorter than their distance apart at base, compressed, triangular.

Petiolarnodeshorterthanthe pedicel,from which it risesabruptly, higher than long and higher in front than behind; from above, broaderthanlong, withstraightanteriorand posteriorborders and feebly convex sides. Postpetiole about one and one-half times as broadas petiole.

Opaque,denselycribratelypunctate,morerugoselyonhead.

Claviform hairs sparse on head, thorax, and petiole and tibiae,

more abundant on gaster, a row along border of antennal scapes.

Short, fine recumbent hairs rather sparse on head, body, and ap- pendages.

Dark

reddish brown.

Type

locality.

—

^{Guatemala: Cacao. Trece Aguas, Alta V. Paz}

(Barber and Schwarz).

Cotypes.—Cdl. No. 24461 U.S.N.M.

This speciesbelongs inthe groupwith halzani

Emery

and hatesi Emery. It is distinct from the first of these in its more elongate antennalscapes, fromthesecondin its

much

smaller sizeand from bothin havingthe sidesofheadbehindthe eyeslesstruncated and inthe occipital border being narrowly, though very distinctly, con- cave atmiddle.

ART.la. ANTS

FEOM HONDURAS AND GUATEMALA MANN. 43

RHOPALOTHRIX (OCTOSTRUMA) WHEELERI,newspecies.

Worker.

—

^Length2.20

mm.

Head

slightlybroaderthanlong, sides posterior to e3^estruncated, posterior border nearly straight. Mandibles slender, especially at apical half,outerborder concaA'e atmiddle, blades with fivestrong, elongate triangular teeth. Anterior border of clypeus broadly rounded. Antennal scapes but moderately dilated at base, with the angle broadly rounded; funicular joints 2-5 less th:m twice as broad as long, joint six longer than broad, terminal joint about as long as remainder of funiculus. Eyes small, little convex.

Thorax very feebly arcuate in profile from front to epinotal base;

from above rounded at middle of sides in the pronotal portion, sides nearlystraight behind. Mesoepinotal impression entirely ob- solete. Epinotal base sloping, on a different plane from the meso-

notum

and separated from it by a rounded angle, flat, longer than broad and barely longer than the declivity; the two surfaces separated by a transversecarina. Spines broadly triangular, their width atbase greaterthan theirlength,shorter thantheir distance apartat base. Petiolarnodenearly oneandone-half timesasbroad as long,suboval;in profile higlierthan longandaslongaspeduncle, abrupt in front, dorsum feebly convex and sloping from front to rear, Postpetiole about two times as broad as long and one and one-half times as broad asthe petiole.

Head

and thorax moderately shining, petiole and gaster nearly opaque. Mandibles, antennae and legs finely and densely punctate.

Head

rugose, fovoelately punctate and with fine striae, some of them reticulate; occipital region

more

finely punctate. Pro-meso-

notum

fovolately punctate in front and sides, the median portion andthe epinotumandsidesexceedinglyfinely anddensely punctate (with an almost velvety appearance). Petiole and postpetiole rugose and coarsely punctate. Gaster cribrately punctate.

Head

and bodythinly covered withfine, short, silky liairs; front of head with very spart elongated clavate hairs. Hairs on border ofantennal scapes stiff,but notclavate. Legs withshort and stiff,

suberect hairs,some ontibiae clavate.

Fuscous; legs

somewhat

lighterthanthe rest.

Type

locality.

—

^Guatemala: Livingstone (Barber and Schwarz).

Type.—Cat

No. 24462,U.S.N.M.

Described from one worker.

This is a peculiar species resemblingRh. petiolata

Mayr

in the absence ofthemesoepinotal impression.

The

latterspecies has the antennal scapes strongly dilated at base and the petiolar node is

twiceasbroadaslongandthebodyisopaque.

44

PROCEEDINGS OF

THE

NATIONAL.

MUSEUM.

vol.81.

CYPHOMYRMEXCOSTATUS. newspecies.

Worker.

—

^{Length 1.50}

mm.

Head

longer than broad, narrowest in front, broadly concavebe- hind, occipital cornerssubangulate^;occiput atmiddle witha pairof lowrounded, longitudinalridges, parallel toeach other;«ndbecoming obseleteon thevertex. Cl> pens

much

longerthan]>road.triangular, nearlyflatin front,withthe anteriorborder very faintly concave at middle. Mandiblesacute apically, the blades with five short teeth.

Frontallobesnearlyflat,eachdistinctlylongerthan broad, with the outer border broadlyandevenlyrounded;continuous withthe carinae.

whichextendstraightanddivergenttotheoccipital border. Antennal scrobesbroadanddeep,bordered beneathbyalow,ratherthickridge whichisinterruptedatmiddle bytheeye. Antennalscapesshort,not attainingoccipital corners,very slenderat basal third, apicalportion stronglyincrassate; median funicularjointsabout twice asbroadas long; terminal jointlongand strongly narrowed attip.

Pronotum

feeblyconvex,sideswitha pair ofroundedtubercles inbackofmid- dle; humeri obtusely angulate; inferior angles blunt, not spinose.

Pro-mesonotal suture not impressed.

Mesonotum

concave,sideswith arather thick margin,which isshallowly impressed alittle posterior tothe middle. Baseofepinotumaboutaslongas the declivity, alittle

longerthanbroad,concaveatmiddle,marginedatsides,themargins angulate. Petioleshorterand

much

thinner than thepostpetiole, the dorsal surface sloping and highest posteriorly; from above, nearly twotimesasbroadas long,widestin front. Postpetiole oneandone- half timesasbroadasthepetiole,alittlebroader thanlong,withtwo coarse, rounded longitudinal ridges which are a little higher and thicker behind thanin front. First gastricsegmentwith four strong andeven longitudinal ridges^foritsentire length,the surfacebetween these slightlyconvex. Legsshort,the flexorsurfacesoftheposterior and middle femora^stronglyexpandedalittlebasal tomiddle;tibiae shortandverystout,the anteriorpair

much

shorter than thetarsi, in cross sectionwith thesidesmeetingat angles.

Subopaque. Finely and densely punctate throughout, with short, recumbent, whitehairsmoderately abundanton head, gasterandap- pendages and^sparse onthorax.

Yellowishbrown,the posteriorpart ofheaddarker thantherest.

Type-locality.

— ^Honduras

^:Lombardia.

aotyfes.—Q:^i. No. 24463U.S.N.M.

Describedfromthreeworkers foundinrottenwood.

This,thoughevidently a true

Cyphomyrmex^

iscuriousinits very short, stubliy legsandthevery strong carinaeonthe gaster.

The

an- tennal scapes areshorterand

much

thickerthan usual in the genus.

C.strigatnr^

Mayr

fromBrazil hasasimilarlysculptured gaster.but

ART.13. ANTS

FROM HONDURAS AND GUATEMALA MANN.

islargerandthethorax bearsprominenttubercles at sidesandoneat the middleof pronotimi and lacksthe longitudinal marginsof cos- tatua.

CYPHOMYRMEXRIMOSUS(Spinola). varietyMINUTUSMayr.

Honduras: Ceiba,Lombardia, San

Juan

Pueblo.

San

Pedro Sula, Tela.

MYRMICOCRYPTACUCUMIS. new species.

Worker.

—

^Length2.50

mm.

Head,excluding mandibles,slightlylongerthanbroad,sidesfeebly convex, posterior corner- rounded, border concave. Mandibles 8- dentate. Clypeus little convex, nearly straight at anterior border.

Frontal lobes thin, their outer borders rounded. Frontal carinae feeble,nearly.straight, divergent, extending nearlyto occipital bor- der. Cheeks with a sharply defined, straight carina extending in-

wardlyto the eyes,fromnear base ofmandiblesalittlelessthanhalf the distance to occipital borders. Antennal scapes surpassing occi- pitalcornersbya distance alittlegreater thantheirdiameterat tips;

first funicular joint one and one-half times as broad as the second andaslongas thesecondandthirdtogether, joints2-8slightlylonger thanbroad, penultimatejoint lessthan halfas longasthe terminal.

Eyes moderateinsizeandconvex,situated infrontofmiddleofsides of head.

Thorax

stout, the sutural impression broad andshallowly concaveandnot interrupting thesculpture.

Pronotum

flatandslop- ingin front, the posteriorportion a very transverse area, convex at middleand nearlyflat at sides, separated fromthe front by a

row

ofshort spines;humeriangulateandshortly spinose;inferiorangles with a short, blunt, downward-pointing spine. Mesothorax nearly flat in front and slightly sloping from front to rear, behind more strongly sloping.

Epinotum

anteriorly with a slightly convex sur- facethatistwiceasbroadaslong; the posteriorportioninthesame plane as the declevity, thinly marginedat sides; at middle with an elongate, bluntly pointed spine that points

upward

and backward.

Petiole short, not pedunculate, in profile but slightly longer than highandthinnerbehind thanin front; fromaboveaslongasbroad.

Postpetiole twiceasbroad, twiceasthickand two andone-halftimes aslongasthepetiole; in profilelongerthanbroad, highestin front, with a feebly convex anteriorsurface which broadly rounds into a long,flat posterior surface; from above, a little longer than broad, broadest at middle, anterior border narowly rounded, sides feebly convex. Gasterin profile thick, the sides obsoletelymargined; from abovethe sides of thefirstsegmentarenearlyparallel. Legslongand ratherslender.

Mandibles sublucid, rather strongly striate and with a few stiff hairs.

Head

and bodydensely grnnulosely punctateandinaddition

46

PROCEEDINGS OF

THE NATIONAL MUSEUM.

^vol.61.

beset with short,thick spines, which aretruncated at tips and bear each a strongly curved, elongate, flattened hair. These spines are regularly arranged, sparselyandmostlyonthemarginofthe thorax, thoughthere is a transverse

row

on the pronotum and three pairs inward fromthemarginal row onthemesonotum.

Appendages

densely punctateandwith suberect.ratherstiffhairs.

Color reddishbrown.

Femah.—

{deai\ixted). Length 3.10

mm.

Head

similar to that of worker, but with longitudinal rugae on front.

Pronotum

with shortandstouthumeral spines. Mesothorax nearly asbroad as long, its surfaceflat. Scutelluma littlebroader than long, strongly excised posterior border, with nearly straight, convergentsides that terminatein stout spines andprojectlaterally.

Epinotal baseand declevit}'notdistinctfromeachother,with short.

verybroadlateral spines. Petioleandpostpetiole similar to those of worker.

Granulose, punctate and opaque, mesothorax and scutellum with short, longitudinal rugae. Spines somewhat shorter than in the worker; lackingonthe thoracicdorsum.

Curved hairs moderately abundant on head, thorax and append- Coloras inworker.

Type

locality.

— ^Honduras

^{: Progresso.}

Type.—

C&.t.No. 24464, U.S.N.M.

MYRMICOCRYPTA EDNAELLA. new species.

Worker.—

Length2-2.25

mm.

(fig.20).

Head

one-fourth longer than broad, slightly narrowed in front, sides little convex, occipital corners subangulate, border nearly straight; vertex rather strongly impressed at middle between the frontal c-arinae, occiput with three smaller impressions, the outer two of which are bordered by fine carinae. Mandibles long and pointed, 6-dentate. Clypeus broadly rounded at anterior border, medianportion elevatedand margined ^{at sides. Frontal}lobes short and ratherthick,carinaeparallel to nearly oppositeanteriorborder of eyes,then arcuate andbordering vertical impressionand extend- ingon occiput. Eyes small, convex, situated at middleof sides of head. Postorbital carinae fine but distinct, extending to occipital corners. Antennalscapes rather stout, slightlysurpassing occipital corners;firstfunicularjointalittleshorter thanjoints2-3 together, secondjointbarel> broaderthanlong, joints3-8alittlelongerthan broad, terminaljointsshorter than thethree jointspreceding. Prono-

tum

nearlyflat infi'ont,more concave behind, dividedbya veryob- tuseangleintotwosurfaces, the anteriorofwhichhasat sides thick marginsthatterminateasbroadly triangularspines,andthe posterior

AET.13.

ANTS FROM HONDURAS AND GUATEMALA MANN. 47

by

more

approximate,^{finercarinae,}whichare dentate bluntlyin front and extendin aconcave curveon the sidesof themesothorax where they are bidentate; humeral spines short and blunt, Mesoepinotal impression strong, bordered by a continuation of the pro-mesotho- racic carina. Base of epinotum flat, quadrate,

much

longer than broad, shorter than the declivity, both surfaces with thin ^lateral margins whichbear triangularspines attheangle. Petiolar peduncle longer than the node, anteroventral spine very ^small, node in pro-

file rounded in front, flat and sloping above; from above, longer than broad,roundedinfrontandconcaveat posterior border. Post- petiolemorethan twiceasbroad andalittlelonger than thepetiolar node, broadest behind. Gaster ratherflat above,especiallybasally:

marginedatsides.

Densely granulose-punctateandopaque. Mandibles punctate and striolateandsubopaque.

Fig. 20.

—

Myr.mecocbypta ednaella, new species. Worker, c. Head; 6,thorax andpetiole.

Hairs on head and body short and clavate, moderately abundant and regularlyarranged on head,postpetiole, and gaster, sparseand onlyonridges ofthethorax, epinotum,andpetiole,with halfadozen on anterior portion of pronotum. Appendages with abundant strongly-curved semii'ecumbentsquamiform hairs.

Yellowish

brown

todarkreddishbrown. Pilosity white.

Female.

—

(dealated). Length 3.10

mm.

Head

resembling thatoftheworker;ocellismall.

Pronotum

with broadly triangular, horizotal humeral spines and

much

larger and thicker spines at middle of side margin.

Mesonotum

irregularly marginedatsidesand with apairof parallel ridgeson median sur- face. Scutellum broader thanlong, carinate at middle,the surface oneither side depressed and flattened, posterior margin projecting horizontally as strong, bluntteeth, sides margined, the margins on front elevated as large, broad spines rounded at tips. Epinotal spines strongerthan ⁱⁿ worker.

Sculpture similar to the worker except that the occipital region of thehead andthe thorax bear^{irregular striae.}

48

PROCEEDINGS OF

THE

NATIONAL,

MUSEUM.

Type

locality.

—

Honduras: Lombardia.

C

otypes.—QdX. No. 24465, U.S.N.M.

Described from two females and a small series of workers taken from colonies beneath stones.

The

fungus gardens are pendulous, hanging from the underside of the stones into little pockets, whicii evidentlyareexcavatedbythe ants.

They

aresmallinsize

—

^alittle

smallerand somewhatthe sameshape as a thimble. Thereare few individuals in a colony.

The

three impressions on the occiput, margined by the ridges.

which give the border superficially the appearance of being bioon cave,andtheformofthefrontalcarinaeareverycharacteristic.

MYCOCEPURNSSMITHI Forel,varietyTOLTECA ^Wheeler.

Honduras

^: Ceiba.

SERICOMYRMEX OPULENTA, ^new species.

^Yorker.

—

Length4

mm.

^(fig. 21).

Head,excluding mandibles,slightlylongerthan broad, broadest^at middle of sides: occipital corners projecting as strong, triangular.

Fig. 21.

—

Slricomyrmhx opulknta. NKW SPECIKS.

PKTIOr.K.

«, Head; 6, thorax anh

rather bluntly pointedspines, from the bases of which thick ridges extendtothefrontallobes. Occipitalgroovestrong,extending

down

vertexto opposite the frontal lobes andbordered basally by ridges whichhalf

way down

curve outwardly and join thosewhichextend fromthe occipital spines. Sides nearlystraight,behind terminating asshort, blunt spines. Mandibles elongate, their blades with eight shortteeth,outerborderdistinctlyconcaveatmiddle. Frontallobes large, widely separated, elevated, and thickened laterally; the sur- facebetweentheir posteriorhalves elevatedandwithtwoshort,poorly defined ridges. Eyeslarge. Antennalscrobes strong, bordered out- wardlybytheir carinae,whichextendfromin frontofthe eyes four- fifths the distance to occipital border, and inwardly by the thiclv