Tetramorium caldarium (Roger)

Type location Germany (Tetrogmus caldarius n. sp., Roger, 1857: 12, worker; Meinert, 1861: 331, male) - see https://www.antweb.org/specimenImages.do?code=casent0102333
junior synonyms
hemisi (as variety of pusillum, Wheeler, 1922: 193, worker) from Zaïre, Niangara by H.O. Lang, in the stomach of a frog - see http://www.antweb.org/specimenImages.do?code=casent0003150
minutum (Tetramorium minutum sp. n., Donisthorpe, 1942a: 30, queen) from Egypt, Siwa - see below
transformans (Tetramorium pauper stirps transformans nov., Santschi, 1914b: 104, worker) from Kenya, Shimoni, xi.1911, Alluaud & Jeannel - no images on Antweb (April 2015)
(see Bolton, 1995) .

Roger's (1857) description is at and . Santschi's (1914b) description of transformans is at . Donisthorpe's (1942a) description of minutum is at .

Bolton's modern descriptions are at - (1979, based primarily on New World specimens) and (1980) .

WORKER - TL 2.1-2.4 mm; with weak frontal carinae and little trace of antennal scrobes. Short, stout blunt hairs on all dorsal surfaces of the body. Colour yellow or light yellowish brown (Bolton, 1980, not illustrated).

A panglobal tramp species, which Bolton (1980) thought to be of African origin. The sole West African records which he listed were from Nigeria, at the savannah location of Mokwa (B. Lasebikan); and Ivory Coast, at ORSTOM (W.L. Brown).

In his blanket description, Bolton (1980) wrote of his suspicion that there are two closely similar species, differing particularly in the width between the frontal carinae at the level of the eyes. Specimens from East Africa and India had this separation as < 0.50 X HW, whereas most Old World and all New World specimens had HW > 0.50 HW. From the specimens shown below, it seems that another consistent feature of the type form is a uniformly dark gaster. In the East African & Saudi Arabia specimens the gaster has variably lighter areas.

For more on the confused mess of susbspecies and synonyms see http://antsofafrica.org/ant_species_2012/tetramorium/tetramorium_simillimum/tetramorium_simillimum_variability.htm

Oxford University Museum specimens

Tetramorium caldarium B Taylor det.	Egypt Mostafa Sharaf	17.viii.2007 Marsa Matrouh 31°21' N 27°14' E	Kaseh Tourist Village	1
Tetramorium caldarium B Taylor det.	Saudi Arabia Mostafa Sharaf	25.ii.2005 Farasan Islands 16°42' N 42°11' E	Major Farasan I., Red Sea	1

Egypt records - in HNS as Tetramorium minutum Donisthorpe (1942a) single queen from Siwa Oasis, collected by J Omer-Cooper, 17.vii.1935. Illustrated in the photomontage, which is collated from http://www.antweb.org/specimen.do?name=casent0102358

The photomontage is of a worker from Egypt, Kaseh; collector Mostafa Sharaf

The photomontage is of a specimen from Saudi Arabia, Farasan Islands, Major Farasan I., Red Sea, 25.ii.2005; 16°42' N, 42°11' E, collector Mostafa Sharaf.