Brachymyrmex nebulosus

In Costa Rica, this very distinctive species has only been collected three times, from two sites on the Pacific slope just below Monteverde. Both sites were about 800m elevation and were in the moist forest transition zone between cloud forest and lowland dry forest climate zones. Both areas were mosaics of forest patches, pastures, scrubby vegetation, and road edges. All three collections were of workers on vegetation in open scrubby vegetation. In the field, these ants look and behave remarkably like Crematogaster. Collections from Honduras and Chiapas, Mexico, have also been from cloud forest sites. They have been collected in pan traps, a beating sample, and a hand-collected forager.

Southern Mexico to Costa Rica.

Face smooth and shiny or densely punctate, with abundant erect setae; scapes surpass vertex margin by about length of first funicular segment; metanotum deeply impressed, mesosoma hour-glass shaped; pronotum shiny, katepisternum and side of propodeum shagreened; mesosomal dorsum, including dorsal face of propodeum, with abundant erect setae; first gastral tergite with abundant erect setae, no appressed pubescence; scapes and legs with abundant long erect pubescence.

Brachymyrmex nebulosus LaPolla & Longino, 2006: 299, fig. 1 (w.) COSTA RICA. Neotropic. AntCat AntWiki HOL