FORMICA BRUNNEA. 11 



Myrmica fuliginosa, Foerst. Hyrn. Stud. Form. 28. 17. 

 Schenck, Beschr. Nans. Ameis. 45. 

 Smith, Brit. Form. p. 105. 5. 

 Mayr. Form. Austr. 79. 19. 



Female. Length 2| lines. — Shining black, or sometimes nigro- 

 piceous ; the mandibles, antenna? and legs obscure ferruginous. 

 with the flagellum beneath, the tarsi and articulations of the 

 legs pale rufo-testaceous ; the head emarginate behind ; the 

 wings hyaline, with the basal half smoky ; the scale of the petiole 

 small, oblong, rounded and ciliated above. Abdomen oblong- 

 ovate, as long as the thorax, slightly pubescent, the extreme 

 apex testaceous. 



This species is at once recognized by its jet-black colour. Its 

 usual habitat is the vicinity of a decaying tree or an old post ; 

 its movements are extremely slow as compared with any other 

 species : numbers may frequently be observed, congregated in 

 masses in the vicinity of the nest, apparently sunning themselves 

 — not, like other species, incessantly at work. I have once 

 or twice found colonies of this ant formed in a hard sand-bank, 

 but such occurrences are unusual. The males and females may 

 be found about the end of June. There is scarcely any perceptible 

 difference in the size of the workers, and the females are very 

 little larger than the working ants; the latter in other respects 

 exactly resemble the females. 



7. Formica brunnea. 

 Famina. — Fusco-nigra, cinereo-micans ; antennis pedibusque 



pallide testaceis, flagellis et femoribus paullo obscurioribus ; 



capite thoracis latitudine ; scapis et tibiis denudatis ; squama 



leviter emarginata. 

 Operaria. — Pallide vel cinerascenti-rufa; abdomine lusco; stilco 



frontali elongate 

 Mas. — Fusco-niger; antennarum flagellis, pedum articulis tar- 



sisque testaceis ; oculis nudis ; squama emarginata ; alis hya- 



linis, basi ad medium infuscatis. 



Formica brunnea, Latr. Hint. Nat. Fourm. p. 169. pi. 6. f. 35 ? . 



Losana, Form. Piem. p. 319. 13. 



Nyl. Form. Fr. et d' Alger. 68. 27. 



Mayr. Ungar. Ameis. p. 13. 21. 

 Formica timida, Foerst. Hym. Stud. Form. 35. 15. 



Schenck, Beschr. Nass. Ameis. 53. 



Mayr. Form. Austr. 89. 23 ? 



