Subfamily Syntermitinae · 聚白蚁亚科

About the subfamily

The subfamily Syntermitinae was established by Engel and Krishna in 2004 (73), with the type genus Syntermes Holmgren, 1909; the subfamily name is derived from the type genus name. This catalogue includes 22 genera and 105 species.

In this subfamily, the soldiers of many species possess both a nasus similar to that of Nasutitermitinae (but without the ability to spray) and well-developed chewing–slashing mandibles, a unique intermediate defensive morphology within the family, while the remaining species have only powerful mandibles and no nasus. This subfamily is endemic to the Neotropical realm: its northern limit reaches Mexico (Cahuallitermes) and Central America (Costa Rica, Panama, Guatemala, Belize, Honduras, Nicaragua), and it extends south to northern Argentina and Uruguay, with Brazil as the center of distribution; Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Venezuela and the countries of the Guiana Shield all have representatives. Most genera lead a subterranean life, and many species build conspicuous epigeal mounds, being a dominant termite group in the South American savannas; their diet consists mainly of organic matter at the soil–wood interface, humus and dead grass. In the worker, the mixed segment of the hindgut is bilobed and overlaps outside the ileum (P1) (reduced to a single lobe only in Procornitermes), and the scale membrane of the inner wall of the enteric valve bears spines (reduced only in Syntermes). The soldier has a well-developed nasus with a truncate apex, a broad and distinct frontal pore, and a narrow, simple labrum with a hyaline tip. The alate has a large, round fontanelle that is slightly concave or shaped like a convex plate, a moderately to strongly elevated postclypeus with a median longitudinal line, a short forewing costal vein (R1), and tarsi lacking an arolium. (3)

Economically, this subfamily is an important group of subterranean pests of agriculture and forestry in Brazil: S. molestus damages pineapple, cotton, rice, maize and eucalyptus plantation seedlings, and there is a first record of serious damage to potato roots (75); Cornitermes cumulans is the famous “cupim-de-montículo” of South American pastures, occurring densely in pastures, roadsides and eucalyptus forests, and it causes stem damage to teak (Tectona grandis) plantations in Mato Grosso State, Brazil (76); Procornitermes has occurrence records in maize fields in Argentina. Procornitermes and Labiotermes damage upland rice and maize in Brazil (42).

This section is the standing account the site maintains for this rank and is updated on this page as the classification is revised; the checklist index is in the Checklist.