Coptotermes dimorphus Xia & He, 1986 二型乳白蚁

Recorded in Fauna Sinica

The morphological and biological accounts below are taken from Fauna Sinica and related literature; only structure and punctuation have been standardized here.

Morphology

Soldier

Soldier: the head occurs in a long pear-shaped and a round pear-shaped form. Head pale yellowish brown, mandibles reddish brown, antennae dull yellow, thorax and abdomen milky yellow. The head with only a few long hairs, the fontanelle with a pair of hairs, the labrum with only a pair of apical hairs; the pronotum with rather few long hairs along its margin, the hairs of the abdomen sparse and arranged in rows, the posterior row denser. In the long pear-shaped form the head (to the base of the mandibles) is longer than wide, widest behind the middle, the posterior margin narrowly rounded, the posterior part of the dorsal margin slightly arched in profile, the postmentum projecting slightly downwards; mandibles stout, their tips curved inwards with the curved end slender and long, the basal half rather straight, the outer margin wavy near the base; labrum broadly spear-shaped, widest behind the middle, the transparent area triangular; the inner margin of the fontanelle aperture nearly semicircular, the upper end slightly inclined backwards in profile; antennae with 15–16 segments, segments 2, 3 and 4 nearly equal in length, segment 3 slightly shorter in a few individuals; postmentum narrow and long, the lateral margin before the widest part slightly concave near the base, narrowest behind the middle, the surface flat. The pronotum longer than half its width, its anterior lateral margins projecting as obtuse angles, the middle of the anterior margin slightly projecting, the median notch narrow and deep, the middle of the posterior margin slightly concave; tibial spur formula 3:2:2. The round pear-shaped head is broader, widest near the posterior end, the posterior margin broadly rounded, the dorsal margin slightly arched near the middle in profile, the postmentum distinctly short and broad, the lateral margin before the widest part slightly concave near the base, narrowest behind the middle, the rest similar to the long pear-shaped form.

Alate

Alate: head yellowish brown, mandibles deep brown, antennae deep yellow, compound eyes black, ocelli deep yellow, with pale markings on the inner side in front of the ocelli; thorax and abdomen slightly paler than the head, wing scales darker than the thorax, wings pale yellow. Head covered with sparse long hairs and scattered short hairs, the labrum and postclypeus with symmetrical long and short hairs, the long and short hairs around the pronotum rather densely arranged, the wing scales with very few hairs, the wing membrane covered with neatly arranged rows of short hairs. Head outline approaching circular, the posterior margin broad and rounded, its dorsal margin rather straight in profile; labrum tongue-shaped and rather arched, widest behind the middle; postclypeus slightly raised, its anterior margin slightly concave, the posterior margin arcuate, less than half as long as wide; compound eyes circular, ocelli narrowly oval, their long diameter greater than half the short diameter of the compound eye and their short diameter less than one-third of the short diameter of the compound eye, closer to the compound eye, the markings on the inner side in front of the two ocelli crescent-shaped; fontanelle small; antennae with 21 segments, the second and fourth nearly equal in length, the third shortest. The first marginal tooth of the left mandible shorter than the second marginal tooth and the apical tooth; the first marginal tooth of the right mandible projecting beyond the second marginal tooth and the apical tooth, the subapical tooth at the base of its anterior margin faint. Pronotum rather broad, the middle of the anterior margin rather straight, the median notch rather narrow; the median notch of the posterior margin slightly broader; the middle of the posterior margins of the meso- and metanotum shallowly concave, with a small spherical process in the centre of the notch. Wings narrow and long; in the forewing the media arising within the wing scale near the basal suture and closer to the cubitus, branched near the middle and at the end, the cubitus with 8–9 branches; the forewing scale longer than the hindwing scale. Tibial spur formula 3:2:2.

Worker

Nymph

Abstract (from the source)

Biology

Distribution and locality

Hekou, Yunnan.

Taxonomic notes

Source: Huang Fusheng et al. (2000), Fauna Sinica, Insecta vol. 17, Isoptera, Science Press. (entry no. 82 in the original work) Entries are cited by their number in the original work.