Crematogaster (Sphaerocrema) lamottei Bernard

Type location Guinea (Bernard, 1952: 232, illustrated, all forms; see Bolton, 1995), 4 workers from station T 10, at 1180 m, chosen as probably matching the queen and 4 males from lower at B8-8, N'Zo. Other workers found at seven stations on Mt. Nimba (all by Lamotte), and also at Boukoko (Oubangui) by A. Hollande. Note that three other varieties, mildly differing by colour and thorax profile are described below ; all forms described .

WORKER - TL 3.8-3.9 mm; entirely milk-coffee coloured, clear, tarsi and funiculae yellowish. All dorsum shiny, smooth or feebly striated, with few hairs. Head near square, shiny, densely and finely longitudinally striated. Antennal funiculus medium length, segment 1 of the club is 3 times longer than segment 2, which is a little shorter others. Thorax with characteristic rectilinear profile of mesonotum and propodeum, something rare in the subgenus, where most have the thorax more or less humped. Mesonotum flat and smooth, falling to the propodeum with a rounded obtuse angle (straight or obtuse in varieties, see below). Short, flat propodeum, shiny but with 5-7 strong striations. Propodeal spines strong, almost as long as the width of the propodeum at their base. Seen from above, as in the profile, spines rectilinear. Petiole smooth almost flat but dilated with the maximum in the posterior* two-thirds. Postpetiole cylindrical and puncturated, a little wider than long (after Bernard, 1952). * "postérieurs" is used in the original but I have to think it is an error for anterior - as in all other Spaherocrema.

Bernard (1952) thought it close to Crem. nigrans (from Zaïre by Kohl) but queen quite distinct. The three worker varieties were -
Variety 1 - numerous workers taken at Nion (Stations 22 & 24), also from N'Zo, Sérengbara, and Station T 59, in primary forest. Differ in colour, black, and profile of mesonotum with a less obtuse posterior angle; propodeal spines incline gently toward to base and are a little incurved.
Variety 2 - 3 workers from Zouépo (B 8-10), and Camp IV, forest at 1000 m; like variety 1, except mesonotum is a little vaulted and propodeal spines straighter.
Variety 3 - from Oubangui-Chari, Boukokou (A. Hollande), somewhat larger workers, TL 4.0-4.3, also more shiny, black, mesonotum as in variety 1, propodeal spines curved, distinctly rising upwards, petiole rather more dilated.

In general, Bernard, placed this, especially the black varieties, within a small group of Sphaerocrema from the northern part of Africa - others being nigrans (Congo, rare, now regarded as in subgenus Crematogaster, Bolton, 1995), striatula (see below, common right across the continent), and phoenix (eastern Africa, rare). Closest perhaps to striatula but that has a more triangular petiole. The queen morphology, in contrast, puts it closer to nigrans, as striatula has a very elongated head and very distinct scutellum and petiole.