Basiceros enana

Introduction

Basiceros enana is an extinct ant species known from a single worker preserved in Miocene-aged Dominican amber, approximately 16 million years old . This tiny ant measured just 5.13mm in total length, making it one of the smallest Basiceros species ever discovered - its head width is about 80% that of the smallest known living species, Basiceros disciger . The specimen was found in amber from the Northern mines of Santiago Province, Dominican Republic, representing a clear example of local extinction in the Caribbean ant fauna . Like its living relatives, this fossil likely had the characteristic dirt ant appearance - workers accumulate soil and litter particles on their bodies as camouflage, a trait that increases with age as foragers venture outside the nest . This species is the sister to all other known Basiceros species, representing an ancient lineage that has since gone extinct from the region .