Glyptotermes fuscus Oshima, 1912 黑树白蚁

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

The soldier has the head yellow, deeper in front, the posterior half of the mandibles reddish yellow and the anterior half black, thorax and abdomen pale yellow to white. Head elongate-tubular, rectangular in dorsal view, the sides parallel; the frons forming a slope of 45 degrees, the upper end of the slope slightly depressed in the middle, distinct frontal ridges not visible. Labrum short, nearly square, not extending beyond the midpoint of the mandibles, its anterior margin straight, the lateral angles obtuse. Mandibles stout: the left mandible has two marginal teeth of the same shape before the midpoint with their tips inclined forwards, a third exactly behind the midpoint, triangular with its tip directed inwards, and a fourth low and broad; the right mandible has two triangular marginal teeth at the middle with their tips directed inwards, the anterior slightly larger than the posterior. Antennae with 13 segments, the second about as long as the third and fourth together, the fifth as long as the second but slightly broader; in a few individuals the antennae have 11 segments, the second and third nearly equal, the fourth slightly longer. Eye spots behind the antennal sockets. Pronotum short, broad and flat, the lateral ends curved towards the venter, the anterior margin concave-arcuate, the posterior margin arcuate with a median concavity.

Alate

Alate head reddish black, pronotum deep brown, thoracic pleura, abdominal tergites and femora brown, venter of the abdomen pale brown, tibiae and tarsi pale yellow, wings brown. Head rectangular, the sides parallel, the posterior margin arcuate; the vertex flat, the frons forming a slope. Compound eyes black and rather small; ocelli elongate-oval or nearly circular, situated directly above the compound eyes and touching them. Anteclypeus pale and trapezoidal, the labrum rather short. Antennae with 12 segments, the second to fourth about equal in size. The anterior margin of the pronotum concave-arcuate, the lateral margins arcuate, the posterior margin also arcuate with a slight median concavity. The forewing scale much larger than the hindwing scale and covering most of it, the wing surface covered with uneven punctures. In the forewing the subcosta is very short, the radius does not extend beyond a quarter of the wing length, the radius sector occasionally connects with the anterior margin by a few very short veins beyond the midpoint, the media arises independently at the humeral suture, close to the radius sector and running straight to the wing tip, the cubitus pale and with many branches; in the hindwing the subcosta disappears, the anterior sections of the radius sector and media are fused and divide into two branches at one-third of the wing length.

Worker

Nymph

Abstract (from the source)

Biology

Distribution and locality

Taiwan; abroad recorded from the Ryukyu Islands, Ishigaki Island and the Ogasawara Islands of Japan.

Taxonomic notes

Source: Huang Fusheng et al. (2000), Fauna Sinica, Insecta vol. 17, Isoptera, Science Press. (entry no. 23 in the original work) Entries are cited by their number in the original work.