A Monograph of the Formicidae of South Africa. 705 



straight and moderately convergent, the outline behind the eyes 

 convex. Eyes fairly convex, large, placed behind the middle. 

 Anterior margin of the clypeus angular in the middle, the clypeus 

 convex transversely but hardly carinate. Head of the usual form, 

 not truncate. Mandibles narrow and shining, sparsely and sharply 

 punctured, 6-dentate. The scapes extend beyond the hind margin 

 by about one-third of their length. Pronotum more convex at the 

 sides, mesonotum narrower than in the 2|_, as long as wide. Meso- 

 epinotal suture much shallower, but still fairly strong. Dorsum of 

 epinotum convex in all directions, a little longer than the declivity ; 

 the latter oblique in its upper two-thirds and horizontal in the lower 

 third. Scale of petiole nodiform, not higher than the petiole is long, 

 with a convex upper face which is about twice as wide as long, anterior 

 and posterior faces equally and feebly convex. 



$, 8 mm. Colour, sculpture, pubescence and shape of the head like 

 that of the 21.. The pilose hairs on the epinotum and scale greyish, 

 less coarse than in the 2J.. Mesonotum and scutellum with a slight 

 gloss, the former reticulate-punctate and with also a few large, 

 shallow and piligerous punctures, the scutellum rugulose only. The 

 mesonotum is parallel-sided, narrow, a little longer than wide. Meta- 

 epinotal suture wide and fairly deep. Dorsum of epinotum trapezoidal, 

 twice as wide at the base as long, its junction with the declivity 

 rounded. Declivity smooth, shining and vertical. Wings hyaline, 

 nervures pale ochreous, stigma brownish yellow. Otherwise like the 2J. . 



cj, 3'8-4 mm. Black. The anterior third of the head nitidulous, 

 the rest of the head and the mesonotum dull, the latter and the whole 

 of the head finely reticulate-punctate, the scutellum, epinotum and 

 petiole very superficially reticulate and shining. Abdomen trans- 

 versely rugulose and shining. Pilosity greyish white, long, thin, fairly 

 abundant on the clypeus, epinotum, petiole and abdomen. Shape of 

 the head like that of ostiarius <$, but the clypeus is more convex, 

 subcarinate ; 1st joint of the flagellum pyriform. Scutellum not 

 gibbous, not higher than the mesonotum as in ostiarius. Petiole 

 nodose, wider than long, the anterior face oblique and flat, the posterior 

 face convex from above to below and forming thereby an indistinct 

 dorsal face. "Wings as in the $. 



Unlike the majority of the sub- genus, this species does not nest in 

 hollow twigs but in the ground. The entrance to the nest is a very 

 small hole, not surrounded by excavated material. The hole is only 

 large enough to admit one worker at a time, but I have been unable 

 to ascertain whether the hole is closed by the 2J. in the usual way, 



