Odontotermes formosanus Shiraki, 1909 黑翅土白蚁

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

Head dark yellow, abdomen pale yellow to greyish white. Pilosity of the head sparse, that of the thorax and abdomen denser. Head oval, longer than wide, widest in the middle and posterior part, slightly narrowed anteriorly; the frons flat; postmentum short and stout, narrow at the anterior end and slightly projecting towards the ventral surface. Mandibles sickle-shaped, the left marginal tooth in front of the midpoint, its apex directed obliquely forwards; the right mandible with a minute tooth at the corresponding position on the inner margin, small and inconspicuous. Labrum lingulate, narrow at the anterior end and without a transparent patch, arcuate at the sides, broader posteriorly, with a row of erect long bristles along the lateral margins, its apex reaching about the middle of the mandibles and not covering the marginal teeth. Antennae with 16–17 segments, segment 2 about equal in length to segments 3 and 4 together, segment 3 longer than, or sometimes shorter than, segment 4. The anterior part of the pronotum is narrow and inclined upwards forwards, the posterior part broader, shaped like an ingot; at the corners where the anterior and posterior parts meet on each side there is an oblique groove running backwards, and both the anterior and the posterior margin have a distinct median notch.

Alate

Dorsum of the head and dorsum of the thorax and abdomen dark brown, the venter brownish yellow; the anterior half of the labrum orange-red and the posterior half pale orange, with a white transverse band between them, the anterior and lateral margins of the labrum white and transparent; wings dark brown. The whole body densely hairy. Head circular, the compound eyes elliptical and the ocelli also elliptical, the distance between the ocellus and the compound eye about equal to the length of the ocellus itself. Postclypeus raised, less than half as long as wide, divided into right and left halves by a median longitudinal suture; anteclypeus equal in length to the postclypeus. Antennae with 19 segments, segment 2 longer than segment 3, 4 or 5. Pronotum broad anteriorly and narrow posteriorly, without a distinct median notch on the anterior margin, the middle of the posterior margin concave forwards; the centre of the pronotum bears a pale cross-shaped mark with a circular pale spot on each side in front of it. Wings long and large, the forewing scale slightly larger than the hindwing scale; the media of the forewing arises from the cubitus and branches profusely at its apex, the cubitus having more than ten branches; the media of the hindwing arises from the radial sector.

Worker

Head yellow, thorax and abdomen greyish white. The lateral and posterior margins of the head form a continuous arc; the fontanelle lies in the middle of the vertex and is a small circular pit; the postclypeus is markedly raised, about half as long as wide, with a median longitudinal suture; antennae with 17 segments, segment 2 longer than segment 3. Length of head to the apex of the labrum 1.70–1.81 mm, width of head 1.36–1.41 mm, width of pronotum 0.72–0.77 mm.

Nymph

Abstract (from the source)

Biology

Alates appear in the nest from March; between April and June they build conical emergence turrets on the ground beside the nest, and towards seven in the evening they crawl out in swarms, usually taking flight in heavy rain, with 2,000 to 3,000 alates flying from a single nest. This species is a major pest that damages reservoir dams, living in the core of the downstream slope where weeds grow; it is very polyphagous, feeding on the trunks and bark of masson pine, Chinese arborvitae, black locust, rubber, elm, eucalyptus, chestnut and China fir, and also damages rice.

Distribution and locality

Widely distributed approximately south of 35° N. In China it occurs at Luoyang and Jigongshan, Henan; Chaoxian and Wuhu, Anhui; Shaanxi; Gansu; Nanjing and Zhenjiang, Jiangsu; Hangzhou, Fenghua, Wenzhou and Longquan, Zhejiang; Wuhan, Jiangling, Yichang and Badong, Hubei; Dong'an and Hengyang, Hunan; Guizhou; Dechang, Xichang, Ya'an, Wanxian and Fuling, Sichuan; Chongqing; Jiangxi; Zhangpu, Xiamen, Nanjing, Yunxiao, Pinghe, Zhangzhou, Putian, Fuzhou, Nanping, Longyan, Changting, Jian'ou and Yong'an, Fujian; Guangzhou, Shunde, Yingde, Kaiping, Taishan and Xuwen, Guangdong; Yulin, Yishan and Liuzhou, Guangxi; Kunming (1,900 m a.s.l.), Daweishan in Pingbian (1,500 m a.s.l.), Yunjinghong and Jinping, Yunnan; as well as Taiwan, Hainan and Hong Kong; abroad it is found in Myanmar and Thailand.

Taxonomic notes

Source: Huang Fusheng et al. (2000), Fauna Sinica, Insecta vol. 17, Isoptera, Science Press. (entry no. 263 in the original work) Entries are cited by their number in the original work.