A new species of Baikuris (Hymenoptera: Formicidae: Sphecomyrminae) in mid-Cretaceous amber from France. (January 2015) - Perrichot, Vincent
Abstract: A new species of the extinct ant genus Baikuris Dlussky, 1987 (Formicidae: Sphecomyrminae) is described and figured from a male preserved in a piece of ∼100 Myr amber from Charentes, in southwestern France. Baikuris maximus sp. nov., is distinguished from other species notably by its larger size, its forewing with vein 2M+Cu absent and vein 3Cu tubular, and the presence of a subpetiolar process. The diagnosis of the genus is emended, and its distribution during the Cretaceous is briefly discussed. Highlights: A new ant species is described from Cretaceous French amber. The new ant belongs to the extinct, exclusively Cretaceous subfamily Sphecomyrminae. The new species belongs to a genus already known from Taimyr and New Jersey amber. The species from French amber is the oldest record of the genus Baikuris.