Crematogaster scutellaris schmidti atratula Zimmermann , 1934: 24; Crematogaster scutellaris smidti(sic!) var. atratula Santschi , 1937: 311; Crematogaster scutellaris subsp. schmidti var. atratula Bolton , 1995: 148.
Material examined: 2 workers, Opatovo (Boka Kotorska Bay), August 18, 1985, leg. M. G. Karaman; 1 worker, West Mouth of Bojana River (Velika Plaža, Ulcinj), July 16, 2004, leg. M. G. Karaman.
Type material: Holotype (1 worker marked by 02-08) and paratype (1 worker marked by 957P) are deposited in Natural History Museum of Montenegro, Podgorica.
Crematogaster schmidti Mayr , 1853, genitalia of male in profile, Tivat, October
09, 1977.
Deposition of additional paratype: KARAMAN's Collection in Podgorica (Crna Gora) (1 worker marked by M-254H)
Diagnosis: Head is, in frontal view, without sculpture, smooth and shining. Thorax finely sculptured, covered with sparse, appressed silvery hairs. Propodeal spines are long, acute, with gently upcurved tips, length of spines is about 2,5 times as long as their basal width. On mesonotum appears distinct longitudinal keel. Whole body, including appendages, dark brown to black. Base of gaster, around the joint edge, is brighter, rest of abdomen is black.
Description:
HOLOTYPE, WORKER (Figs. 13-15; Plate 1: G-I):
Total lenght: 3 mm. Head is, in frontal view, without sculpture, smooth and shining, covered with silvery appressed pubescence, these hairs are separated at their bases by a distance equal as length of hairs. Antennal scape is covered with dense, appressed hairs. Mandibles are paler than rest of the head, longitudinally striated, bearing 3-4 teeth each.
Sculpture of thorax weak, covered with sparse, appressed silvery hairs. Propodeal spines are long, acute, with tips gently upcurved, length of spines is about 2,5 times as long as their basal width. On mesonotum appears distinct longitudinal keel. Mesopropodeal furrow deeply impressed. Petiole trapezoid, like that in other species of scutellaris complex.
Abdominal segments entirely covered with longitudinally oriented, appressed, long silvery hairs whose bases are separated by distance equal as half length of a hair.
Crematogaster montenigrinussp. nov. , head of worker in
dorsal view.
Colour: Whole body, including appendages, dark brown to black. Base of gaster, around the joint edge, is brighter, rest of abdomen is black. Total length, measurement of 3 workers: 2.9-3.1 mm.
Crematogaster montenigrinussp. nov. , petiole and postpetiole of worker in dorsal view.
differential diagnosis
Crematogaster montenigrinus , sp. nov. belongs to C. scutellaris group of species. Total body length of workers of this species is smallest in compare with other workers of this group in south Europe. Body colour is generaly dark brown to black, as in C. laestrygon and C. algirica . But C. montenigrinus has distinctly longer propodeal spines (compare with C. laestrygon ) and smaller total body lenght (compare with C. algirica ). Workers of Crematogaster montenigrinus has weaker sculptured thorax than those in C. schmidti . Longitudinal keel less prominent compare with that in C. schmidti and C. gordani .
ETYMOLOGY
The name of the species is derived from the place where Zimmermann (1934) and we collected samples: Montenegro (Crna Gora).
REMARKS
Crematogaster scutellaris schmidti atratula described by ZIMMERMAN (1934), has remained uninvestigated ever since. Apart from a citation by SANTSCHI (1937), BOLTON (1995) and JOHNSON (2007), no other data of this taxon appear in the literature.
The original description was based upon workers collected near the Monastery Sveta Savina, Herceg Novi, on the Adriatic coast of Crna Gora (Montenegro). Original description given by Zimmermann:
„Das ganze Tier fast gleichmäßig dunkelschwarzbraun, nahezu schwarz, Gaster kaum dunkler, Fühler und Beine nur wenig heller als Kopf und Thorax, somit sehr bedeutend dunkler als die Form jonia, bei der auch die dunkelsten Stücke , die wir gesehen haben, einen beträchtlichen Farbenunterschied zwischen Gaster und Vorderkörper aufweisen. Oberflächenskulptur des Kopfes, Form des Thorax und der Dornen wie bei C. scutellaris schmidti , die Oberseite des Thorax ebenso wie bei dieser kräftiglängsgerunzelt ; auf dem Mesonotum ein deutlicher Mittelkiel. - Die neue Form unterscheidet sich von C. scutellaris schmidti , bezw. jonia aber auch durch ihre Größe : sie ist beträchtlich und konstant kleiner als diese, nämlich 3'0 - 3'4 mm lang, während C. scutellaris schmidti , bezw. jonia 3'5 - 4'0 mm."
SANTSCHI (1937) mentioned this species in his key to the workers of scutellaris group of species: „- Tête et thorax brun rouge plus ou moins foncé . Balkans, Egée ... sp. scutellaris smidti var. ionia For. ; - ou noirâtre , Dalmatie... var. atratula Zimm. "
BOLTON (1995) mentioned that Crematogaster scutellaris subsp. schmidti var. atratula Zimmermann , 1935 (sic!):21 (w.) YUGOSLAVIA is unavailable name, in accordance with ICZN rules. Finally, Crematogaster scutellaris subsp. schmidti var. atratula has been treated as junior synonim of C. schmidti (JOHNSON, 2007).
We collected the material of this taxon from coast of Montenegro, establishing distinct taxonomical differences from other species of this group. By this way, we established new speciesCrematogaster montenigrinussp. nov. (ICZN articles 23.3.5; 45.5.1) (ICZN, 2000).
COMMENTS AND DISCUSSION
Body of workers of Crematogaster montenigrinus is by colour similar to that of Crematogaster auberti , dark brown to black. Clear distinction between these taxa is prominent keel on alitrunk, present in C. montenigrinus , missing in C. auberti . Similar body colour appears also in C. laestrygon , but in this species propodeal spines are smaller than these in C. montenigrinus .
Variety nigra ( C. scutellaris var. nigra Krausse , 1912), is described from Sardinia, with only one sentence in original description: «Diese neue schwarzköpfigeVarietät entdeckte ich bei». EMERY (1916) mentioned that Krausse had collected entirely black workers mixed with workers provided with red heads and concluded that it might be colour variety, only (C. scutellaris var . (aberr.?) nigra ). In his key to the worker caste from Italy, he mentioned that the sculpture of var. nigra is the same as that in C. scutellaris . BARONI-URBANI (1971) considered var. nigra as synonym of C. scutellaris .
C. laestrigon var. maura Forel , 1909, was found in Algeria and originaly described as Crematogaster auberti r. laestrygon var. maura . The workers of this variety is with smaller propodeal spines than those in C. montenigrinus , propodeum is only bituberculate («Les épines du métanotum sont presque dentiformes», FOREL, 1909). Worker body size is distinctly longer (L= 4.0 - 4.8 mm) than that in C. montenigrinus (2.9-3.1 mm).
C. laestrygon var. atlantis Santschi , 1937, described from Algeria and Tunisia, is with body dark brown to black in workers. Its propodeal spines are smaller than those in montenigrinus . SANTSCHI, in his original description, mentioned that those spines in workers of var. atlantis are shorter than those in C. laestrygon .
The smallest workers in C. scutellaris complex (L= 2.7-3.2 mm) appear in C. scutellaris var. alii Forel , 1907. F O R E L, in his original description, observes that body colour of var. alii likes that in C. schmidti (base of gaster is redish brown, rest of gaster is brown). Propodeal spines are shorter than those in C. schmidti , and longer than those in C. jehovae .
Other species, races and varietes of genus Crematogaster with trapezoidal petiole and propodeal keel on alitrunk cited for Europe, Near East, Mediterraneann or North Africa, can not be confused with Crematogaster montenigrinus , as follow:
C. scutellaris subsp. schmidti var. hybrida Emery , 1916, described from Italy, are with body colour intermediate between C. scutellaris and C. schmidti . It is unavailable name (AGOSTI & COLLINGWOOD, 1987);
C. scutellaris var. medispina Forel , 1905, described from Trieste (Italy) is a junior synonym of C. schmidti (EMERY, 1922);
C. laestrigon var. diminuta Santschi , 1910, described from Tunisia: workers are 3 mm long, black coloured, with small propodeal teeth (like that in var. maura );
C. laestrigon var. striaticeps Forel , 1909, from Algeria, has dark coloured workers provided with keel, their occiput and pronotum are striated (in C. montenigrinus are smooth).
C. scutellaris r. tenuispina Forel , 1902, from Algeria and Sahara: workers alitrunk is redish-yellow, gaster is brown.
Figure 16: Map of Crna Gora (Montenegro) with marked localities where Crematogaster gordani (Podgorica) and C. montenigrinus (Opatovo, Velika plaža) found.
