A400 Bulletin American Museum of Natural History. [Vol. XXXIV, 
suming stored food and when fresh food cannot be collected, must have great 
advantages. Although I have never noticed this behavior in other species 
of Pheidole, I believe that a study of the harvesting species with very large- 
headed soldiers in the deserts of the southwest may bring other similar cases 
to light. 
17. Pheidole spadonia sp. nov. 
Soldier. Length 4—-4.5 mm. 7 7 
Head very large, subrectangular, 14 times as long as broad, distinctly broader 
in front than behind, with straight sides and rounded posterior lobes, separated by a 
deep occipital excision, which is continued forward as a pronounced occipital groove 
to the middle of the head. In profile it is most convex in the middle and distinctly 
compressed dorso-ventrally behind. Eyes rather small, flattened, at the anterior 
fourth of the sides. Mandibles very convex, with two large apical and one or two 
small basal teeth. Clypeus very short, its anterior margin broadly excised in the 
middle, its central portion feebly convex but not carinate. Frontal area triangular, 
rather deep. Frontal carine short, diverging. Antennz very small and slender, the 
scapes curved but not flattened at the base, not reaching to the eyes; funicular joints 
2-8 distinctly longer than broad; club shorter than the remainder of the funiculus, 
its two basal joints subequal, together as long as the terminal joint. Thorax short, 
robust, through the prominent humeri not more than half as broad as the head. In 
profile the pronotum is tather straight and sloping, forming a blunt obtuse angle with 
the mesonotum, which is of the same length and slopes backward at a slighter inclina- 
tion but terminates near the mesoépinotal suture in a sharp, narrow, transverse torus 
with abrupt, concave posterior slope. Epinotum with subequal base and declivity, 
the latter sloping, concave; spines rather slender and pointed, as long as broad at 
their laterally compressed bases, twice as far apart as long, directed upward and 
outward. Petiole from above with extremely short peduncle, subrectangular, as 
broad in front as behind, with sharp anterior angles; in profile the node has a long 
concave anterior and abrupt, straight posterior surface, its border is transverse, 
rather sharp and feebly excised in the middle. Postpetiole nearly 3 times as broad 
as the petiole and four times as broad as long, its sides produced as prominent pointed 
projections with convex anterior and concave posterior borders. Gaster broadly 
elliptical, much smaller than the head, somewhat flattened dorso-ventrally. Legs 
rather long, with stout femora. 
Shining; mandibles smooth, with sparse and very small piligerous punctures; 
clypeus smooth and shining in the middle, longitudinally rugulose on the sides; 
anterior half of head very sharply, longitudinally rugulose, the rugeze on the front 
distinctly diverging, those on the cheeks parallel. Posterior half of head, pro- and 
mesonotum smooth and shining, with very small, scattered piligerous punctures; 
metanotum feebly and indistinctly rugulose-punctate, the declivity of the epinotum 
between the spines finely transversely rugulose. Petiole and postpetiole with fine, 
dense, shallow punctures on the sides so that these parts appear a little more opaque. 
Gaster smooth and shining, with fine, scattered, piligerous punctures. 
Hairs golden yellow, coarse, of unequal length, rather long and abundant, sub- 
erect; longer and more reclinate on the gaster, shorter and oblique on the legs and 
scapes. 
