Archive for Fijian Ants

New ant species described from Fiji – Proceratium vinaka

February 3, 2015 2 comments

Francisco Hita Garcia, known more familiarly as Paco, took the lead on describing a newly discovered species of Proceratium from Fiji [1]. Vinaka is the Fijian word for thank you. My friend Moala Tokota’a told me it is the most important word in the whole language.

Proceratium vinaka

Proceratium vinaka — a new species of ant described from Fiji

To call this blind, inconspicuous species rare is rather understated. In fact, there is only one single individual worker of this species ever collected in the whole wide world. I remember the moment I first laid eyes on it. A group of us including Rosie Gillespie, some of the crew from WCS and my wife Julia were working our way down from the misty peak of Mt. Devo (Vanua Levu) after a long day. There is a single track unsealed road we were following that winded down the mountain. The upper elevations of Mt. Devo are as pristine a forest as one will find in Fiji, but there was an old garden site on the way down that was transitioning back to jungle.

Distribution map of Fijian Proceratium species

Distribution map of Fijian Proceratium species

I was scanning the ground on hand and knee, searching for a last score before heading back to the truck, when this slow-moving stout and armored ant caught my eye. It looked out of place foraging on the surface. The line from Notorious B.I.G. shoot first ask questions last compelled me to get this special creature secured in a vial before it went to ground in the leaf litter. I stuck around for a few more minutes hoping to find more of its kin, but to no avail.

That was ten years ago. Since then this single specimen has been mounted on an insect pin together with various labels detailing the location, date and circumstances of its capture. It has been resting quietly in an insect cabinet, the sole known representative of its species, awaiting a name. Thanks to the effort of Paco and Evan, Proceratium vinaka is the 12th new ant species we’ve described from Fiji over the past decade. Only 34 more to go!

[1] Hita Garcia F, EM Sarnat, EP Economo (2015) Revision of the ant genus Proceratium Roger (Hymenoptera, Proceratiinae) in Fiji. ZooKeys 475: 97-112. doi:10.3897/zookeys.475.8761 [pdf]

Field Research, Fijian Ants , , ,

New line drawings for undescribed Fijian Pristomyrmex

November 30, 2012 2 comments

Here are a few line drawings I am working on for the description of an undescribed species of Fijian Pristomyrmex. In the Ants of Fiji monograph, this species is listed as Pristomyrmex sp. FJ02.

Full face view of Pristomyrmex sp. FJ02. Line drawings can allow for better representation of important taxonomic features compared to specimen photographs. For example, the mandibular tooth structure is essential for Pristomyrmex species identification. The mandibular teeth on the specimen photograph used as a template for this illustration were obscured and difficult to see. The line drawing shows them quite clearly.

Rendering the characteristic foveae (circular depressions) of Pristomyrmex was a bit challenging, and I am sure my method could use some improvement. I began by using the Ellipse Tool to get the basic shapes, and then rotated them according to the template specimen. Next I used the eraser tool to break the foveae that appeared somewhat shallow. I then selected all the ‘broken’ foveae and applied a stroke profile that tapers strongly on both ends. For the ‘unbroken’ foveae I selected each individually and used the Width Tool to constrict the ellipses at a single point.

Profile of Pristomyrmex sp. FJ02. Of the over 50 known species of Pristomyrmex, this is only the second that lacks propodeal spines. The other, P. inermis, occurs in New Guinea.

I also used a new technique for the hairs on this illustration. I decided to use the Outline Stroke function for all of the hairs, and selected a white outline stroke. This allows for a white break where hairs overlap the ant profile and other strokes.

Fijian Ants, Illustrations , , ,