Xiphopelta

Xiphopelta is a genus of ponerine ants containing 11 species found in the Afrotropics. Described as a subgenus in 1913, synonymized in 1973, and revalidated to full generic status by Fisher et al. in 2025, its species were previously placed in the genus Mesoponera by Schmidt & Shattuck in 2014. Its scientific name means "sword-shielded ant" from ancient Greek xíphos + péltā.

Species

Xiphopelta contains 11 valid species as of 2025.

• Xiphopelta ambigua <small>(André, 1890)</small>
• Xiphopelta elisae <small>(Forel, 1891)</small>
• Xiphopelta flavopilosa <small>(Weber, 1942)</small>
• Xiphopelta nimba <small>(Bernard, 1953)</small>
• Xiphopelta novemdentata <small>(Bernard, 1953)</small>
• Xiphopelta picea <small>(Bernard, 1953)</small>
• Xiphopelta scolopax <small>(Emery, 1899)</small>
• Xiphopelta senegalensis <small>(Santschi, 1914)</small>
• Xiphopelta testacea <small>(Bernard, 1953)</small>
• Xiphopelta villiersi <small>(Bernard, 1953)</small>
• Xiphopelta weberi <small>(Bernard, 1953)</small>

References