Revision of Diagnostic Morphological Traits in Three Caribbean Species of Heterotermes (Isoptera: Rhinotermitidae)

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Revision of Diagnostic Morphological Traits in Three Caribbean Species of Heterotermes (Isoptera: Rhinotermitidae) Author: Zach H Griebenow Co-Presenters: Major: Entomology Research Advisor: Susan Jones Termites of the genus Heterotermes Froggatt (Rhinotermitidae: Heterotermitinae) are pantropical subterranean wood-feeders capable of causing significant structural damage. Despite their economic importance, the taxonomy of Heterotermes remains understudied due to a lack of robust morphological characteristics enabling reliable identification. The aim of this study was to investigate a range of novel morphometric attributes in four Caribbean species of Heterotermes previously identified by sequencing of three genes. All samples were from Puerto Rico and genetically attributed to either Heterotermes cardini (Snyder), H. convexinotatus (Snyder), H. tenuis (Hagen), or an undescribed Heterotermes sp. Only members of the soldier caste were examined. Soldiers (at least three from each sample) were imaged and measurements made using the image-stacking AutoMontage program. Preliminary results demonstrated that measures of the pronotum (the upper surface of the first thoracic segment [prothorax]) were useful for species identification, and thus this aspect of termite anatomy was singled out for extensive investigation. For each specimen, three pronotal morphometric indices were examined: the ratio of pronotum breadth to width, curvature of the anterior pronotal margin, and curvature of the posterior pronotal margin. In addition, mandible and head length were measured. Initial comparison of morphometric and genetic data suggested that only traits of the anterior pronotal margin, a novel taxonomic character, were useful in discriminating among these four Heterotermes species. In particular, morphometric data suggested that the undescribed Heterotermes sp. was a distinct species as opposed to a member of a species complex with H. cardini. Thus, this morphometric study further supported phylogenetic data indicating that four distinct species of Heterotermes occur in Puerto Rico..

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Isoptera 535 See Also the Following Articles Biodiversity ■ Biogeographical Patterns ■ Cave Insects ■ Introduced Insects Further Reading Carlquist , S. ( 1974 ) . “ Island Biology . ” Columbia University Press , New York and London . Gillespie , R. G. , and Roderick , G. K. ( 2002 ) . Arthropods on islands: Colonization, speciation, and conservation . Annu. Rev. Entomol. 47 , 595 – 632 . Gillespie , R. G. , and Clague , D. A. (eds.) (2009 ) . “ Encyclopedia of Islands. ” University of California Press , Berkeley, CA . Howarth , F. G. , and Mull , W. P. ( 1992 ) . “ Hawaiian Insects and Their Kin . ” University of Hawaii Press , Honolulu, HI . MacArthur , R. H. , and Wilson , E. O. ( 1967 ) . “ The Theory of Island Biogeography . ” Princeton University Press , Princeton, NJ . Wagner , W. L. , and Funk , V. (eds.) ( 1995 ) . “ Hawaiian Biogeography Evolution on a Hot Spot Archipelago. ” Smithsonian Institution Press , Washington, DC . Whittaker , R. J. , and Fern á ndez-Palacios , J. M. ( 2007 ) . “ Island Biogeography: Ecology, Evolution, and Conservation , ” 2nd ed. Oxford University Press , Oxford, U.K . I Isoptera (Termites) Vernard R. Lewis FIGURE 1 Castes for Isoptera. A lower termite group, University of California, Berkeley Reticulitermes, is represented. A large queen is depicted in the center. A king is to the left of the queen. A worker and soldier are he ordinal name Isoptera is of Greek origin and refers to below. (Adapted, with permission from Aventis Environmental the two pairs of straight and very similar wings that termites Science, from The Mallis Handbook of Pest Control, 1997.) Thave as reproductive adults. Termites are small and white to tan or sometimes black. They are sometimes called “ white ants ” and can be confused with true ants (Hymenoptera).
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