Unrecognized for centuries: distribution and sexual caste descriptions of the West European Aphaenogaster species of the subterranea group (Hymenoptera, Formicidae).

ABSTRACT: There are only two Aphaenogaster species from the subterranea group in the western Mediterranean: A.ichnusa Santschi, 1925, from south-western Europe, and A.subterranea (Latreille, 1798), also occurring in central and eastern Europe. Historically, the two species have been widely misunderstood: A.ichnusa was long considered a Sardinian endemic subspecies of A.subterranea, while its continental populations were misidentified as A.subterranea s. str. Recently, A.ichnusa was elevated to species rank and its worker caste was redescribed with that of A.subterranea, allowing for their correct identification. Yet their distribution was documented in detail only for France and Sardinia. Furthermore, no morphological characters were des

SUBMITTER: Schifani E 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10194075 | biostudies-literature | 2023

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature