Belongs within: Myrmicinae.
Pheidole, the big-headed ants, is a diverse genus of ants with a clear division in colonies between major and minor workers. The minor workers are usually the more active and most likely to be involved in foraging, with the major workers often specialising in carrying larger or harder food items. The coastal brown ant Pheidole megacephala has become a significant invasive species in some parts of the world.
Members of the genus may commonly be recognised by a prominent downwards step in the mesosomal profile between promesonotum and propodeum (Heterick 2009).
Characters (Heterick 2009): Antenna with twelve segments, antennal club three-segmented; promesonotum in lateral view steeply sloping down to propodeum; workers dimorphic.
<==Pheidole Westwood 1839FT08 (see below for synonymy)
|--*P. providens (Sykes 1835) [=Atta providens]TB85
|--P. algaeN-ZLI11
|--P. allani Bingham 1903B03
|--P. ampla Forel 1893 [=P. variabilis ampla]TB85
| |--P. a. amplaTB85
| |--P. a. mackayensis Forel 1902TB85
| |--P. a. parviceps Forel 1915TB85
| `--P. a. perthensis Crawley 1922TB85
|--P. angustior Forel 1902 [=P. latinoda angustior]B03
|--P. anthracina Forel 1902TB85
| |--P. a. anthracinaTB85
| |--P. a. grandii Emery 1914TB85
| `--P. a. orba Forel 1902TB85
|--P. aphrasta Zhou & Zheng 1999Z01
|--P. aristotelisN-ZLI11
|--P. athertonensis Forel 1915TB85
| |--P. a. athertonensisTB85
| |--P. a. cedarensis Forel 1915TB85
| `--P. a. tambourinensis Forel 1915TB85
|--P. aurivilliiA61
|--P. bhavanae Bingham 1903B03
|--P. bicarinataES12
|--P. bicornisDL99
|--P. binghami Forel 1902B03
|--P. bluntschliiN-ZLI11
|--P. bos Forel 1893TB85
| |--P. b. bosTB85
| |--P. b. baucis Forel 1910TB85
| `--P. b. eubos Forel 1915TB85
|--P. brevicornis Mayr 1876TB85
|--P. butteliN-ZLI11
|--P. cairnsiana Forel 1902 [=P. javana cairnsiana]TB85
|--P. californicaACS18
|--P. capellinii Emery 1887Z01 [incl. P. capellinii var. asperataB03, P. lighti Wheeler 1927Z01]
|--P. carinicepsN-ZLI11
|--P. clydeiBS06
|--P. concentrica Forel 1902TB85
| |--P. c. concentricaTB85
| `--P. c. recurva Forel 1910TB85
|--P. conficta Forel 1902TB85
|--P. constanciae Forel 1902 [incl. P. constanciae var. nigra]B03
|--P. dentata [incl. P. commutata]RD77
|--P. deserticola Forel 1910TB85
| |--P. d. deserticolaTB85
| `--P. d. foveifrons Viehmeyer 1924TB85
|--P. elecebra [=Sympheidole elecebra]WW90
|--P. elisaeN-ZLI11
|--P. fallaxDL99
|--P. feae Emery 1895Z01
|--P. fergusoni Forel 1902B03
|--P. fervens Smith 1858Z01 (see below for synonymy)
|--P. fervidaOT99
|--P. flaveria Zhou & Zheng 1999Z01
|--P. fossulata Forel 1902 [=P. jucunda fossulata]B03
|--P. gellibrandi Clark 1934TB85
|--P. ghatica Forel 1902B03
|--P. grayi Forel 1902B03
|--P. hartmeyeri Forel 1907TB85
|--P. himalayana Forel 1902B03
|--P. hongkongensis Wheeler 1928 [=P. rinae hongkongensis]Z01
|--P. hoogwerfi Forel 1902 [=P. sharpi hoogwerfi]B03
|--P. horni Emery 1901B03
|--P. hortensisN-ZLI11
|--P. hospita Bingham 1903B03
|--P. hyattiBS06
|--P. impressiceps Mayr 1876TB85
|--P. impressifronsA61
|--P. incurvata Viehmeyer 1924TB85
|--P. indica Mayr 1878 [incl. P. indica var. coonoorensis]B03
|--P. inquilina [=Epipheidole inquilina]WW90
|--P. jordanicaE89
|--P. jucunda Forel 1885B03
|--P. lamellinoda Forel 1902B03
|--P. latinoda Roger 1863B03
|--P. liteae Forel 1910TB85
|--P. longiceps Mayr 1876TB85
| |--P. l. longicepsTB85
| |--P. l. doddi Forel 1910TB85
| `--P. l. frontalis Forel 1902TB85
|--P. longipesN-ZLI11
|--P. longiscapus Zhou & Zheng 1999Z01
|--P. lucioccipitalisN-ZLI11
|--P. luteipes Emery 1914E14
| |--P. l. luteipesE14
| `--P. l. obvia Emery 1914E14
|--P. magretti Emery 1887B03
|--P. malinsi Forel 1902B03
|--P. megacephala (Fabricius 1793)FT08 (see below for synonymy)
|--P. mjobergi Forel 1915 [=P. (Pheidolacanthinus) mjobergi]TB85
|--P. morrisiSZG16
|--P. multidens Forel 1902B03
|--P. mus Forel 1902B03
|--P. naorojii Forel 1902B03
|--P. nietneri Emery 1901B03
|--P. noda Smith 1874Z01 (see below for synonymy)
|--P. oceanicaOT99
|--P. ocellata Zhou 2001Z01
|--P. opaciventris Mayr 1876TB85
|--P. pallidula (Nylander 1849)OM19
|--P. parva Mayr 1865B03
|--P. peguensis Emery 1894B03
|--P. phipsoni Forel 1902B03
|--P. pieli Santschi 1925Z01
|--P. plagiaria Smith 1860B03
|--P. platypus Crawley 1915TB85
|--P. pliniiN-ZLI11
|--P. pronotalis Forel 1902B03
|--P. proxima Mayr 1876TB85
| |--P. p. proximaTB85
| |--P. p. bombalensis Forel 1910TB85
| `--P. p. transversa Forel 1902TB85
|--P. punctulataA61
|--P. pyriformis Clark 1938TB85
|--P. raboN-ZLI11
|--P. roberti Forel 1902B03
|--P. rogersi Forel 1902B03
|--P. rotschana Forel 1902B03
|--P. rotundataA61
|--P. rugosa Smith 1858B03
|--P. ryukyuensis Ogata 1982I92
|--P. sagei Forel 1902B03
|--P. sauberiN-ZLI11
|--P. selathorax Zhou 2001Z01
|--P. sepulchralis Bingham 1903B03
|--P. sharpi Forel 1902B03
|--P. sinaiticaE89
|--P. sinicaZ01
|--P. smythiesii Forel 1902Z01 [=P. (Ceratopheidole) smythiesiiZ01; incl. P. smythiesi var. bengalensisB03]
|--P. spathifera Forel 1902 [incl. P. spathifera var. aspatha, P. sphathifera var. yerburyi]B03
|--P. spinoda (Smith 1858) [=Atta spinoda]TB85
|--P. striativentris Mayr 1878B03
|--P. sulcaticeps Roger 1863 [incl. P. sulcaticeps var. punensis]B03
|--P. susanowo Onoyama & Terayama 1999OT99
|--P. sykesi Forel 1902B03
|--P. tasmaniensis Mayr 1866TB85
| |--P. t. tasmaniensisTB85
| `--P. t. continentis Forel 1902TB85
|--P. templaria Forel 1902B03
|--P. teneriffanaH09
|--P. tepicana [incl. P. instabilis]RD77
|--P. tethepa Wilson 1985P92
|--P. tjibodanaN-ZLI11
|--P. trapezoidea Viehmeyer 1913TB85
|--P. turneri Forel 1902TB85
|--P. tysoniES12
|--P. umbonataE14
|--P. upeneciN-ZLI11
|--P. variabilis Mayr 1876FT08
| |--P. v. variabilisTB85
| |--P. v. aliena Emery 1914E14
| |--P. v. latigena Forel 1907TB85
| |--P. v. mediofusca Forel 1902TB85 [incl. P. mediofusca var. croceithorax Emery 1914E14]
| |--P. v. ocior Forel 1915TB85
| |--P. v. ocyma Forel 1915TB85
| |--P. v. parvispina Forel 1902TB85
| |--P. v. praedo Forel 1902TB85
| |--P. v. redunca Crawley 1915TB85
| |--P. v. rugocciput Forel 1902TB85
| `--P. v. rugosula Forel 1902TB85
|--P. vigilans (Smith 1858) (see below for synonymy)TB85
|--P. vinelandicaG12
|--P. vistanaACS18
|--P. watsoni Forel 1902B03
|--P. wiesei Forel 1910TB85
|--P. woodmasoni Forel 1885B03
|--P. wroughtoni Forel 1902B03
|--P. xanthocnemis Emery 1914E14
`--P. yeensis Forel 1902 [=P. sulcaticeps r. yeensis]Z01
Pheidole Westwood 1839FT08 [=Phidole Bingham 1903Z01; incl. Allopheidole Forel 1912Z01, Anergatides Wasmann 1915Z01, Bruchomyrma Santschi 1922Z01, Cardiopheidole Wheeler 1914Z01, Cephalomorium Forel 1922Z01, Ceratopheidole Pergande 1895Z01, Conothoracoides Strand 1935Z01, Conothorax Karavajew 1935Z01, Decapheidole Forel 1912Z01, Elasmopheidole Forel 1913Z01, Electropheidole Mann 1921Z01, Epipheidole Wheeler 1904Z01, Eriopheidole Kusnezov 1952Z01, Gallardomyrma Bruch 1932Z01, Hendecapheidole Wheeler 1922Z01, Ischomyrmex Mayr 1862Z01, Isopheidole Forel 1912Z01, Leptomyrma Motschulsky 1863Z01, Macropheidole Emery 1915Z01, Oecophthora Heer 1852Z01, Parapheidole Emery 1915Z01, Pheidolacanthinus Smith 1864Z01, Scrobopheidole Emery 1915Z01, Sympheidole Wheeler 1904Z01, Trachypheidole Emery 1915Z01, Xenoaphaenogaster Baroni Urbani 1964Z01]
Pheidole fervens Smith 1858Z01 [incl. P. cavannae Emery 1887Z01, P. oceanica cavannaeE14, P. javana var. dharmsalanaB03, P. javana Mayr 1867Z01, P. oceanica var. nigriscapa Santschi 1928Z01]
Pheidole megacephala (Fabricius 1793)FT08 [=Formica megacephalaB03; incl. Oecophthora perniciosa Gerstacker 1859Z01, O. pusilla Heer 1852Z01, P. pusillaE89, Myrmica suspiciosa Smith 1859Z01, Atta testacea Smith 1858Z01, M. trinodis Roger 1863Z01]
Pheidole noda Smith 1874Z01 [=P. nodusZ01; incl. P. rhombinoda var. micantiventris Mayr 1897Z01, P. nodus var. praevexta Wheeler 1929Z01, P. rhombinoda Mayr 1878Z01, P. nodus rhombinodaZ01, P. rhombinoda var. taprobanae non P. taprobanae Smith 1858B03]
Pheidole vigilans (Smith 1858) [=Atta vigilans; incl. P. dolichocephala André 1896, P. ampla norfolkensis Wheeler 1927, P. ampla parallela Forel 1902, P. ampla yarrensis Forel 1902]TB85
*Type species of generic name indicated
References
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