MYRMICA. 109 



two forms which Nylander later described as Myrmica ruginodis 

 and laevinodis, since only these two of this group can be described 

 as stinging very badly. 



These ants are the " Fourmi rouge " of Huber, and were called 

 " Red Ants " by Gould and other early writers. 



We possess five forms which have been considered to be only 

 subspecies by some authors, but I regard them, in company with 

 Andre, Escherich, and Wheeler, etc., as good though closely allied 

 species. 



Head oval, rounded posteriorly ; clypeus very convex, rounded poster- 

 iorly between the bases of the antennae ; mandibles broad, terminal border 

 dentate ; maxillary palpi six- jointed ; labial palpi four- jointed ; antennae 

 twelve- jointed, with a three- or four-jointed club (in the British species), scape 

 arched or bent at the base, the three last joints of thefuniculus, taken together, 

 evidently shorter than the rest ; antennal carinae widely separated ; frontal 

 area depressed, triangular, pointed posteriorly ; eyes well developed. Thorax 

 rounded anteriorly ; suture between pronotum and mesonotum obsolete ; 

 suture between mesonotum and epinotum moderately distinct, the thorax 

 somewhat sinuate at this point ; epinotum armed with two acute spines. 

 Petiole cylindrical anteriorly, nodiform posteriorly ; post-petiole nodiform, 

 transverse ; g aster oval ; sting very large. Legs : femora clavate, spurs 

 pectinate. 



$ Characters of the $. Wings : fore-wings with one cubital cell half 

 divided by a transverse vein, and one discoidal cell. 



<J Head smaller in proportion than in the g and $ ; clypeus, mandibles, 

 and palpi as in the ^ and $ ; antennae thirteen- join ted, scape variable in 

 length ; funiculus with the first joint shorter than the second, and a not 

 very distinct four- or five- jointed club ; eyes very large ; ocelli prominent. 

 Thorax massive ; mesonotum prominent with distinct Mayrian furrows ; 

 epinotum only armed with small teeth or tubercles. Wings as in the $. 



Ovum : White, roundish. 



Larva : Yellow, narrow anteriorly, broad posteriorly ; the segments 

 gradually increasing in width until quite close to the base. The whole body 

 covered with hairs, which are much more abundant in the young larvae. 

 The first to the sixth abdominal segments are furnished on the dorsum with 

 a pair of long anchor-tipped hairs, which are generally absent in the full- 

 grown larvae. Some of the other long hairs possess a single hook instead of 

 an anchor-tip, some hairs are serrate, and some bifurcate or trifurcate. 



Pupa : White, transversely striate ; becoming yellow when mature. 



Original description [Latreille Nouv. Diet. d'Hist. Nat. 24 178-179 



(1804)] :- 



" II. Antennes inserees tres-pres du bord anterior de la tete. 



1. Antennes grossissant insensiblement vers leur extremite 1 ; premier 

 article faisant presque la moitie de leur longueur, dans les femelles et les 

 mulcts ; tete epaisse ; abdomen ovoiide ou conique ; (palpes maxillaires de 

 la longueur au moins des machoires, sensibles de quatre a six articles). 



A. Premier article des antennes toujours decouvert. 



B. Un aiguillon dans les femelles et les mulets. 



b. Second anneau de 1'abdomen en forme de nceud, s6par6 du troisieme 

 par un profound etranglement ; pedicule de 1'abdomen forme" de deux noeuds. 

 ** Mandibles triangulaires. 

 411. Genre Myrmice, Myrmica. 



Mes F. bossues et mes F. piquantes. 

 F. rubra \ T . 

 F. cephalotes J ljinn - 



