The West-Palaearctic Colobopsis ant populations have long been considered a single species (Colobopsis truncata). We studied the diversity of this species by employing a multidisciplinary approach and combining data from our surveys, museum and private collections, and citizen science platforms. As a result, we have revealed the existence of a second species, which we describe as Colobopsis imitans sp. nov., distributed allopatrically from Co. truncata and living in the Maghreb, Sicily and southern Iberia. While the pigmentation of Co. truncata is reminiscent of Dolichoderus quadripunctatus, that of Co. imitans is similar to Crematogaster scutellaris, with which Co. imitans lives in close spatial association, and whose foraging trails it habitually follows, similar to Camponotus lateralis and other ant-mimicking ants. The isolation between Co. imitans and Co. truncata seems to have occurred relatively recently because of significant, yet not extreme, morphometric differentiation, and to mtDNA polyphyly. Both Co. imitans and Co. truncata appear to employ mimicry of an unpalatable or aggressive ant species as an important defensive strategy; this ‘choice’ of a different model species is motivated by biogeographic reasons and appears to act as a critical evolutionary driver of their diversification.

中文翻译：

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模仿是蚂蚁多样化的驱动因素吗？生物地理学、生态学、行为学、遗传学和形态学定义了第二个西古北界 Colobopsis 物种（膜翅目：蚁科）

西古北界 Colobopsis 蚂蚁种群长期以来一直被认为是单一物种（Colobopsis truncata）。我们采用多学科方法并结合来自我们的调查、博物馆和私人收藏以及公民科学平台的数据，研究了该物种的多样性。结果，我们揭示了第二种物种的存在，我们将其描述为 Colobopsis imitans sp。十一月，从 Co. truncata 异域分布，生活在马格里布、西西里岛和伊比利亚南部。虽然 Co. truncata 的色素沉着让人联想到 Dolichoderus quadripunctatus，但 Co. imitans 的色素沉着类似于 Crematogaster scutellaris，Co. imitans 与其生活在密切的空间关联中，并且它习惯性地遵循其觅食轨迹，类似于 Camponotuslateralis 和其他蚂蚁- 模仿蚂蚁。公司之间的隔离。imitans 和 Co. truncata 似乎是最近才出现的，因为它们具有显着的但不是极端的形态分化和 mtDNA 多系性。Co. imitans 和 Co. truncata 似乎都采用模仿难吃或具有攻击性的蚂蚁物种作为重要的防御策略。这种对不同模式物种的“选择”是出于生物地理原因，并且似乎是其多样化的关键进化驱动力。