Pericapritermes gutianensis Li & Ma, 1983 古田近扭白蚁

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 and antennae orange-yellow, the left mandible dark brown, the right mandible reddish brown, the labrum pale white; the thoracic and abdominal tergites and the legs pale yellow. Several bristles scattered over the upper part; long bristles sparsely distributed on the periphery of the pronotum and on the posterior margins of the mesonotum and metanotum; the abdominal tergites bear, besides a few bristles, rather numerous soft hairs. Head rectangular, the sides parallel, with indistinct constrictions at the mandibular bases and near the posterior margin, the posterior margin slightly straight. The length of the labrum varies with the mandibles; it is generally broader than long or almost as long as broad, in all cases broad anteriorly and narrow posteriorly and nearly square, with an almost straight anterior margin and slightly projecting anterolateral corners. Mandibles extremely asymmetrical: the left mandible strongly twisted in the middle, its top obliquely truncate, the apex blunt; the right mandible shorter and straight, sabre-like, its apex pointed. Antennae with 14 segments, segment 4 the shortest. The median suture of the head is reddish brown and reaches behind the fontanelle; the fontanelle is dot-like. Postmentum long, widest near the anterior quarter, narrow and parallel in the middle. Pronotum saddle-shaped, the anterior half vertically upturned, its anterior margin without a notch, the posterior margin slightly arcuate and projecting.

Alate

Head and pronotum brownish, antennae, postclypeus and wings brown, compound eyes black, ocelli, fontanelle and anteclypeus pale white, postmentum and coxae brown, femora and tibiae pale brown. The head, pronotum and abdominal tergites are densely covered with hairs, and many pale white pin-prick-like dots are scattered over the head and pronotum. Head nearly circular. Fontanelle elongate-oval with short bifurcations on both sides of its anterior end, and above it another small white dot, extremely conspicuous. Four markings are faintly visible in front of the ocelli and behind the postclypeus. Postclypeus raised, its median line slightly evident. Ocelli large, their distance from the compound eye almost equal to or slightly less than the ocellar diameter and greater than the distance from the compound eye to the lower margin of the head. Antennae with 15 segments, segment 3 the shortest. The anterior part of the pronotum is slightly upturned and bears a conspicuous T-shaped mark; no notch is visible on the anterior margin, and the posterior margin has a distinct notch. The media of the forewing arises independently at the shoulder suture and gives off three or four branches posteriorly, the cubitus having nine to ten branches; the media of the hindwing arises from the base of the radial sector and gives off two or three branches posteriorly, the cubitus having ten to eleven branches.

Worker

Nymph

Abstract (from the source)

Biology

Distribution and locality

Gutian, Shanghang, Fujian.

Taxonomic notes

Source: Huang Fusheng et al. (2000), Fauna Sinica, Insecta vol. 17, Isoptera, Science Press. (entry no. 373 in the original work) Entries are cited by their number in the original work.