Genus Cephalotermes · 头白蚁属

Morphology

The descriptions below are an adaptation of the original genus-level accounts; terms follow the meaning of the source, and the original is not transcribed verbatim.

Diagnostic characters

A monotypic genus, with only Cephalotermes rectangularis (Sjöst.), from Cameroon and the Congo. The soldier head is rectangular and flattened-cylindrical, eyeless, with antennae of 12 segments; the worker mandibles are of the modified Termes type (Hamitermes type), with antennae of 13 segments; the alate has antennae of 14 segments, segment 1 very large and segment 3 small, wings with spines, and the female without exudate hairs. Holmgren's original description is based on the queen (a dealate individual) and points out that, judging from the size of its head and thorax, the alate itself should be fairly small.

Alate

Described from the queen (Königin) in the original. Head oval, slightly narrowed anteriorly. Frons flatly convex, slightly depressed in front of the frontal gland opening. Compound eyes medium-sized, fairly flat; ocelli medium-sized, slightly lateral, separated from the compound eyes by hardly more than their larger diameter. Frontal gland opening small and distinct, on the middle of the head. Clypeal base moderately convex, almost as long as half its width, posterior margin fairly strongly convex and anterior margin straight and sharply delimited, brighter than the frons. Labrum wider than long. Mandibular basal segments small; mandibles of the Termes type, the basal tooth of the left mandible weakly developed. Antennae of 14 segments, segment 1 very large, segment 3 small. Pronotum only slightly narrower than the head, head width 0.79 mm, pronotum width 0.7 mm. Posterior margins of the meso- and metanotum with an emargination, the posterior projections blunt and rounded. Forewing scale distinctly longer than the hindwing scale, the wing surface with small spines. Female without exudate hairs; the sides of the queen's abdomen verrucose, seemingly wrinkled, weakly pigmented. Because the abdomen is extremely developed, the queen examined is unusually large.

Soldier

Head rectangular, flattened-cylindrical. Frons slightly inclined. Eyeless, cranial suture invisible. Frontal gland opening barely discernible, frontal gland very indistinct and small. Clypeus lens-shaped; labrum quadrangular with rounded anterior corners. Mandibles short and robust, the base large; 2 small teeth on each side in the middle; the left mandible with a small tooth at the base, the base of the right mandible mainly rounded. Antennae slender, of 12 segments, segment 3 shorter and narrower than segment 2 and slightly shorter than segment 4. Pronotum rather small, saddle-shaped, the anterior lobe rather short. Cerci small, without styli. Fore tibia with 3 apical spurs, mid and hind tibiae with 2 each.

Worker

Small in size. Head oval, fairly thick, flatly convex; frontal gland opening fairly far back. The length of the clypeal base greater than half its width, convex, the posterior margin very strongly arched and sharply delimited, the anterior margin straight. Labrum small, strongly inclined, wider in the middle than at the base. Mandibles of the modified Termes type (Hamitermes type). Antennae of 13 segments, segment 3 far shorter and narrower than segment 2 and distinctly shorter than segment 4. Pronotum short, far narrower than the head, saddle-shaped, the anterior lobe almost as long as the posterior part. Cerci short, without styli. Note in the original: Malpighian tubules without a collecting vesicle, hindgut segments I–II without glandular plates.

Sources: Holmgren, N. 1912. Termitenstudien 3. Systematik der Termiten. Die Familien Mastotermitidae, Protermitidae und Mesotermitidae. Kungliga Svenska Vetenskapsakademiens Handlingar 48(4): 1–166, Taf. 1–4., pp. 84—85（archive.org 项 biostor-184513 页面图像） This text is an adaptation, not a verbatim transcription of the original.