About Neoponera verenae Forel, 1922
Identification: Only a small number of Neoponera species have workers that lack erect hairs on the dorsum of the mesosoma; these species include N. magnifica, N. bucki, N. apicalis, N. obscuricornis, and N. verenae. In N. apicalis, the antennal funiculus has a yellow to light brown tip. To narrow down identification further, just three of these species – N. verenae, N. apicalis, and N. obscuricornis – have eyes that occupy more than one-third of the side of the head. N. verenae can be distinguished from N. obscuricornis by the shape of its petiole: the posterior lateral margins of the petiole are sharp in N. verenae, while they are broadly rounded in N. obscuricornis.
