The Ants of Africa
Genus Camponotus subgenus Tanaemyrmex
Camponotus (Tanaemyrmex) cognatocompressus Forel

maculatus species-group
TL 8-10-12 mm plus; alitrunk profile convex in a smooth elongated curve, propodeal declivity not or poorly separable from dorsum, if the latter always much shorter than dorsum; petiole scale of major cuneiform, with convex anterior face and quite sharp dorsal margin; mostly bicoloured with alitrunk lighter and distinct light areas on gaster; dimorphic (?) minors with head narrowed posteriorly but not dramatically so and without any "neck".

{Camponotus cognatocompressus}

Camponotus (Tanaemyrmex) cognatocompressus Forel

return to key {link to the Hymenoptera Name Server} Type locality "Africa" (Camponotus rubripes Drury r cognatus Sm. var. cognato-compressus Forel, 1886f: 143 & 151, "unavailable name"; Forel, 1904b: 379, worker, queen & male; raised to species under name xerxes, Pisarski, 1967: 414); junior synonym xerxes (as race of maculatus, Forel, 1904f: 424, worker & queen; Karavaiev, 1910b: 9, soldier and synonymy - wrongly as senior; Forel, 1913d: 434, male) from Iran; all forms described (see Bolton, 1995) .

Forel's (1886f) description is at {original description}; the specimens were earlier described (under cognatus) in his (1879a) paper - the text is at {original description}. Forel's (1904f) description of xerxes is at {original description}. The overall feature from Forel's several pieces, is of a form that is larger and matt relative to maculatus s.s. The specimens were from Egypt and Tunisia, although I suspect the Forel (1879a) specimens were those listed by Magretti (1884) from the Sudan-Eritrea border area. Forel's (1904f) brief note on xerxes gives that as wholly black, whereas the cognatocompressus from Africa had the alitrunk and even part of the gaster reddish-yellow. In the earlier work (1886f) he noted the soldiers were larger TL ca 15 mm) than any Camponotus maculatus variety.

Photographed specimens from Egypt, Zaranik, N. Sinai, E 34°26' N 30°39'; 4.v.2003, collected by Mostafa Sharaf; this has CI 89, distinct setae on lower margin of hind tibiae, a sharp summit to the petiole scale.

Other images can be seen in the folder at - {original description}

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© 2007, 2008 - Brian Taylor CBiol FIBiol FRES
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