Afrosubulitermes congoensis 刚果非锥白蚁
- Type locality
- Democratic Republic of the Congo: Kisangani (Stanleyville)
- Distribution
- Republic of the Congo, Angola, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ghana, Côte d'Ivoire, Nigeria, Uganda
List： English (genus page) · 中文 · Español
Summary
Afrosubulitermes congoensis is the only extant species of the genus Afrosubulitermes, in the family TERMITIDAE (subfamily Nasutitermitinae). The species was described by Emerson in 1960; the type locality is Democratic Republic of the Congo: Kisangani (Stanleyville). Distribution: Republic of the Congo, Angola, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire, Nigeria, Uganda.
Etymology
Genus name Afrosubulitermes: From Latin Afro- (Africa) + subula (awl) + termes.
Specific epithet congoensis: After Congo
Taxonomic position
- Family: TERMITIDAE — 280 genera, 2144 species
- Subfamily: Nasutitermitinae — 81 genera, 606 species
- Genus: Afrosubulitermes — monotypic, 1 species
Distribution
- Distribution records: Republic of the Congo, Angola, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire, Nigeria, Uganda
The record above follows the wording of the original data; no geocoding or standardized place names have been applied.
Morphology
The description below is paraphrased from the original or a later revision, by caste; the source is cited at the end.
Diagnostic characters
Sands considers this genus the closest to Eutermellus among the Ethiopian genera, and the generic boundary between the two is not as clear as the original description suggested: the main characters of the genus are the extremely small size of the alate, the greatly reduced pilosity, and the relatively short nasus of the soldier; it also shares characters with Postsulitermes and appears to be intermediate between that genus and Eutermellus.
Alate
On the left mandible the apical tooth is distinctly longer than marginal tooth 1, but the distance between the two is slightly shorter than that between marginal teeth 1 and 3 (left mandibular index 0.89–0.94); the cutting edge in front of marginal tooth 3 is deeply concave, slightly wavy or nearly straight. The postclypeus is almost flat, following the contour of the head, and is 2–3 times as wide as long. The fontanelle appears as a slender, narrow ridge visible only in oblique light on the highly polished head capsule, with a pale elliptical spot in front of it. The compound eyes do not project from the sides of the head. The head is almost hairless, bearing only paired conspicuous setae on the vertex, between the ocelli, and at the middle and anterior margin of the postclypeus.
Soldier
Monotypic. The nasus is slender and cylindrical, tapering to a fine point at its apex; the reduced mandibles lack an apical process, and the anterior margin of the labrum is wavy; there are 12 antennal segments.
Worker
The mandibles are as in the alate, but the apical tooth is proportionally longer (left mandibular index 1.36–1.39); the cutting edge behind marginal tooth 1 of the left mandible is more wavy; the ridges of the right molar plate are more pronounced.
This genus is monotypic, containing only this species; the following is the genus-level description based on the original literature; species-level measurements and intraspecific variation are given in the original.
Distribution map
No GBIF record with coordinates was found for this species.
Related papers
Cached papers for this genus (matched automatically, for reference); to search this species with its junior synonyms merged in, use the literature search.
- Isoptera
Abstract
Winged termites vary in size, from the large Macrotermes with a body length of 19–20 mm and a wing span of about 90 mm, to Afrosubulitermes, which is 4–5 mm long and has a wing span of 9–10 mm. Their color ranges from light to dark brown, and their wings vary from transparent to dark brown. The head is round or slightly oval and flattened above and there are usually large mandibles. In the families Rhinotermitidae and Termitidae, there is a small pore, the fontanelle, medially on the frontal region, usually behind the posterior margin of the eyes. It is the external opening of the frontal gland. In the soldiers of some species, this external gland opening has been modified for the purposes of defense. The compound eyes are large and in all families except Termopsidae and Hodotermitidae there are ocelli situated near the upper border of the eyes. The antennae are long and there are 15–32 beadlike segments. Variations in the number of segments are sometimes related to the number of molts in the nymph stage; the two antennae may not always have the same number of segments.
Papers on this species, synonyms included → OpenAlex Google Scholar CNKI
Abstracts come from open metadata; copyright remains with the original authors/publishers. For reference only — please check the original.
Cite this species
Citation strings are generated from the fields of this page; please keep the DOI and the version number when citing.
GB/T 7714
班奈特格林. Extant Isoptera (termites): a checklist of Latin and Chinese names: Afrosubulitermes congoensis 刚果非锥白蚁[EB/OL]. Version 2026.10.30. https://termite-extant-isoptera.org/en/species/afrosubulitermes-congoensis/. DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.23646836.
BibTeX
@misc{isoptera_afrosubulitermes_congoensis_2026,
author = {班奈特格林},
title = {Afrosubulitermes congoensis: a checklist of extant Isoptera (termites)},
year = {2026},
version = {2026.10.30},
howpublished = {https://termite-extant-isoptera.org/en/species/afrosubulitermes-congoensis/},
note = {TERMITIDAE; version 2026.10.30; DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.23646836},
doi = {10.5281/zenodo.23646836}
}
RIS
TY - ELEC TI - Afrosubulitermes congoensis: a checklist of extant Isoptera (termites) AU - 班奈特格林 PY - 2026 UR - https://termite-extant-isoptera.org/en/species/afrosubulitermes-congoensis/ DO - 10.5281/zenodo.23646836 ER -