1974 ] 
Wheeler & Wheeler — Teratomyrmex 
39 
Recently Dr. W. L. Brown sent us a worker of T eratomyrmex 
(see Fig. 7 and 8) together with several larvae. Given such a weird 
worker could one reasonably expect its larva to be somewhat bizarre 
also? We hoped it would. And we were disappointed: the larva is 
quite ordinary. Its profile is pogonomyrmecoid, a character shared 
with 19 other genera in the Formicinae; its mandibles are campono- 
toid in common with 23 other formicine genera. In fact, in our key 
to the larvae of the Formicidae (1974), in which most ant larvae 
were differentiated to genera or at least to tribes, we could only add 
T eratomyrmex to the residual lump of 22 undifferentiated genera: 
“Tribes Formicini, Gesomyrmecini, Gigantiopini, Melophorini and 
Plagiolepidini.” 
The index of specialization (see our 1974) for T eratomyrmex is 
14; that of the tribe Formicini is 14. [The most specialized ant 
larvae — the Leptanillinae — have an index of 35, while the Formi- 
cinae as a whole are less specialized with 17. The index for the 
family as a whole is 22.] 
Genus Teratomyrmex McAreavey 
Body pogonomyrmecoid. Entire integument spinulose. Body hairs 
long and moderately numerous; of 3 types: denticulate; long, smooth 
and flexuous; 2- or 3-branched, smooth with the branches long and 
flexuous. Head hairs moderately numerous; unbranched, denticulate 
throughout most of length. Labrum deeply bilobed. Mandibles 
camponotoid. Maxillae with paraboloidal apex; palp a paxilla; galeae 
digitiform. Labrum subrectangular in anterior view; palp a short 
paxilla ; opening of sericteries wide and salient. 
Teratomyrmex sp. (near greavesi McAreavey) Fig. 1-6. Length 
(through spiracles) about 3.7 mm. Shape pogonomyrmecoid (i.e., 
diameter greatest near the middle of the abdomen, decreasing gradu- 
ally toward head and more rapidly toward posterior end, which is 
rounded ; thorax more slender and forming a rather stout neck which 
is curved ventrally) but abdomen rather slender. Anus posteroventral 
and with 2 small lips. Wing and gonopod vestiges present. Ten pairs 
of spiracles. Entire integument spinulose, the spinules most promi- 
nent on the venter of T1-3 and AI-AIII, sparse and scattered else- 
where. Body hairs moderately numerous and long. Of 3 types: 
(1) 0.075-0.15 mm long, unbranched and with numerous short 
denticles, longest and most numerous on the thorax; (2) 0.2-0.33 mm 
long, unbranched, smooth, very long, slender and flexuous, none on 
