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Issue: Vol. 9 No. 1: February 2026
Type: Article
Published: 2026-02-25
DOI: 10.11646/palaeoentomology.9.1.9
Page range: 76-84
Abstract views: 156
PDF downloaded: 5

Expanding the fossil record of Siinikaponera (Formicidae, Ponerinae): a new species from Oligo–Miocene Mexican amber

Laboratorio de Sistemática Molecular, Escuela de Estudios Superiores del Jicarero, Universidad Autónoma del Estado de Morelos, C. P. 62909, Jojutla, Morelos, México
Universidad del Magdalena, Santa Marta, Magdalena, Colombia
Chiapas fossil Lagerstätte New taxa Ponerinae Formicidae

Abstract

A new species of the fossil ant genus Siinikaponera Varela-Hernández, Riquelme & Guerrero, 2025, Siinikaponera balana sp. nov., is described based on a single alate gyne preserved in amber from Montecristo, Chiapas, Mexico. This species exhibits the primary diagnostic features of Siinikaponera, particularly the presence of paired protruding clypeal lobes, mandibles with asymmetrical dentition, a pronotum bearing a relatively long neck-like extension, and a serrate flagellum. Siinikaponera balana sp. nov. differs from Siinikaponera sulimata Varela-Hernández, Riquelme & Guerrero, 2025, by possessing a petiole with a short peduncle, a petiolar node that is approximately as tall as it is long with anterior and posterior margins meeting at an acute angle, and a spur on the forelegs.

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