Studies on the Development of Captive Termite Colonies
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New Termites and Hitherto Unknown Castes from the Canal Zone, Panama 1
NEW TERMITES AND HITHERTO UNKNOWN CASTES FROM THE CANAL ZONE, PANAMA 1 By THOS. E. SNYDER Entomologist, Forest Insect Investigations, Bureau of Entomology, United States Department of Agriculture INTRODUCTION lis Banks (fig. 1) and C. longicollis Banks convinced the writer that they The agricultural development of the should be included in Holmgren's sub- -Canal Zone and the clearing of the genus Lobitermes. C. dudleyi, on the dense growth of tropical jungle for other hand, is a Cryptotermes and sup- banana, pineapple, avocado, and cacao presses thompsonae Snyder. Neither plantations will result in the killing of Banks's figures nor his description of many termite colonies of species that C. dudleyi indicates require a moist habitat. The intense that the soldier has Tieat of the tropical sun will render the the anterior margin ■decaying logs, stumps, and branches of the pronotum ser- on the ground and even the soil too rate, the distinctive dry and unsuitable for them. Large character of C.thomp- areas of the Zone already have been sonae, but the writer cleared of termites by the formation of has since examined Banks's type. Gatun Lake, which flooded the land, FIG. l.—Kalotermes thereby drowning the termite colonies Interesting bio- (Lobitermes)brevicollis: in the soil. Nevertheless, termites will logical notes were ob- Mandibles of soldier, tained on the habits showing marginal always constitute a serious problem in teeth. (From draw- Panama, and damage to the woodwork of Cylindrotermes ing made by camera and contents of buildings as well as andRhynchotermes; lucida) to living vegetation must be carefully Cylindrotermes (PI. -
Termite, Odontotermes Formosanus Shiraki (Termitidae: Isoptera), in Camphor, Cinnamomum Camphora (L.) (Lauraceae)
Hindawi Publishing Corporation Psyche Volume 2012, Article ID 123102, 5 pages doi:10.1155/2012/123102 Research Article Observations of the Biology and Ecology of the Black-Winged Termite, Odontotermes formosanus Shiraki (Termitidae: Isoptera), in Camphor, Cinnamomum camphora (L.) (Lauraceae) Arthur G. Appel,1 Xing Ping Hu,1 Jinxiang Zhou,2 Zhongqi Qin,2 Hongyan Zhu,2 Xiangqian Chang,3 Zhijing Wang,2 Xianqin Liu,2 and Mingyan Liu2 1 Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology, Auburn University, 301 Funchess Hall, Auburn, AL 36849-5413, USA 2 Fruit and Tea Institute, Hubei Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Wuhan 430209, China 3 Plant Protection and Fertilizer Institute, Hubei Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Wuhan 430070, China Correspondence should be addressed to Arthur G. Appel, [email protected] Received 2 October 2011; Revised 15 January 2012; Accepted 30 January 2012 Academic Editor: Deborah Waller Copyright © 2012 Arthur G. Appel et al. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Aspects of the biology and ecology of the black-winged termite, Odontotermes formosanus Shiraki, were examined in a grove of camphor trees, Cinnamomum camphora (L.), located at the Fruit and Tea Institute, Wuhan, China. Of the 90 trees examined, 91.1% had evidence of termite activity in the form of exposed mud tubes on the bark. There was no relationship between tree diameter and mud tube length. Mud tubes faced all cardinal directions; most (60%) trees had multiple tubes at all directions. However, if a tree only had one tube, 22.2% of those tubes faced the south. -
Fiber-Associated Spirochetes Are Major Agents of Hemicellulose Degradation in the Hindgut of Wood-Feeding Higher Termites
Fiber-associated spirochetes are major agents of hemicellulose degradation in the hindgut of wood-feeding higher termites Gaku Tokudaa,b,1, Aram Mikaelyanc,d, Chiho Fukuia, Yu Matsuuraa, Hirofumi Watanabee, Masahiro Fujishimaf, and Andreas Brunec aTropical Biosphere Research Center, Center of Molecular Biosciences, University of the Ryukyus, Nishihara, 903-0213 Okinawa, Japan; bGraduate School of Engineering and Science, University of the Ryukyus, Nishihara, 903-0213 Okinawa, Japan; cResearch Group Insect Gut Microbiology and Symbiosis, Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, 35043 Marburg, Germany; dDepartment of Entomology and Plant Pathology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27607; eBiomolecular Mimetics Research Unit, Institute of Agrobiological Sciences, National Agriculture and Food Research Organization, Tsukuba, 305-8634 Ibaraki, Japan; and fDepartment of Sciences, Graduate School of Sciences and Technology for Innovation, Yamaguchi University, Yoshida 1677-1, 753-8512 Yamaguchi, Japan Edited by Nancy A. Moran, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, and approved November 5, 2018 (received for review June 25, 2018) Symbiotic digestion of lignocellulose in wood-feeding higher digestion in the hindgut of higher termites must be attributed to termites (family Termitidae) is a two-step process that involves their entirely prokaryotic microbial community (5). endogenous host cellulases secreted in the midgut and a dense The gut microbiota of higher termites comprises more than bacterial community in the hindgut compartment. The genomes of 1,000 bacterial phylotypes, which are organized into distinc- the bacterial gut microbiota encode diverse cellulolytic and hemi- tive communities colonizing the microhabitats provided by the cellulolytic enzymes, but the contributions of host and bacterial compartmentalized intestine, including the highly differentiated symbionts to lignocellulose degradation remain ambiguous. -
Evaluation of the Chemical Defense Fluids of Macrotermes Carbonarius
www.nature.com/scientificreports OPEN Evaluation of the chemical defense fuids of Macrotermes carbonarius and Globitermes sulphureus as possible household repellents and insecticides S. Appalasamy1,2*, M. H. Alia Diyana2, N. Arumugam2 & J. G. Boon3 The use of chemical insecticides has had many adverse efects. This study reports a novel perspective on the application of insect-based compounds to repel and eradicate other insects in a controlled environment. In this work, defense fuid was shown to be a repellent and insecticide against termites and cockroaches and was analyzed using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC– MS). Globitermes sulphureus extract at 20 mg/ml showed the highest repellency for seven days against Macrotermes gilvus and for thirty days against Periplaneta americana. In terms of toxicity, G. sulphureus extract had a low LC50 compared to M. carbonarius extract against M. gilvus. Gas chromatography–mass spectrometry analysis of the M. carbonarius extract indicated the presence of six insecticidal and two repellent compounds in the extract, whereas the G. sulphureus extract contained fve insecticidal and three repellent compounds. The most obvious fnding was that G. sulphureus defense fuid had higher potential as a natural repellent and termiticide than the M. carbonarius extract. Both defense fuids can play a role as alternatives in the search for new, sustainable, natural repellents and termiticides. Our results demonstrate the potential use of termite defense fuid for pest management, providing repellent and insecticidal activities comparable to those of other green repellent and termiticidal commercial products. A termite infestation could be silent, but termites are known as destructive urban pests that cause structural damage by infesting wooden and timber structures, leading to economic loss. -
Under Serratia Marcescens Treatment Kai Feng1,2, Xiaoyu Lu1,2, Jian Luo1,2 & Fang Tang1,2*
www.nature.com/scientificreports OPEN SMRT sequencing of the full‑length transcriptome of Odontotermes formosanus (Shiraki) under Serratia marcescens treatment Kai Feng1,2, Xiaoyu Lu1,2, Jian Luo1,2 & Fang Tang1,2* Odontotermes formosanus (Shiraki) is an important pest in the world. Serratia marcescens have a high lethal efect on O. formosanus, but the specifc insecticidal mechanisms of S. marcescens on O. formosanus are unclear, and the immune responses of O. formosanus to S. marcescens have not been clarifed. At present, genetic database resources of O. formosanus are extremely scarce. Therefore, using O. formosanus workers infected by S. marcescens and the control as experimental materials, a full-length transcriptome was sequenced using the PacBio Sequel sequencing platform. A total of 10,364 isoforms were obtained as the fnal transcriptome. The unigenes were further annotated with the Nr, Swiss-Prot, EuKaryotic Orthologous Groups (KOG), Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) Ortholog public databases. In a comparison between the control group and a Serratia marcescens-infected group, a total of 259 diferentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identifed, including 132 upregulated and 127 downregulated genes. Pathway enrichment analysis indicated that the expression of the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway, oxidative stress genes and the AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) pathway in O. formosanus may be associated with S. marcescens treatment. This research intensively studied O. formosanus at the high-throughput full-length transcriptome level, laying a foundation for further development of molecular markers and mining of target genes in this species and thereby promoting the biological control of O. -
Termites (Isoptera) in the Azores: an Overview of the Four Invasive Species Currently Present in the Archipelago
Arquipelago - Life and Marine Sciences ISSN: 0873-4704 Termites (Isoptera) in the Azores: an overview of the four invasive species currently present in the archipelago MARIA TERESA FERREIRA ET AL. Ferreira, M.T., P.A.V. Borges, L. Nunes, T.G. Myles, O. Guerreiro & R.H. Schef- frahn 2013. Termites (Isoptera) in the Azores: an overview of the four invasive species currently present in the archipelago. Arquipelago. Life and Marine Sciences 30: 39-55. In this contribution we summarize the current status of the known termites of the Azores (North Atlantic; 37-40° N, 25-31° W). Since 2000, four species of termites have been iden- tified in the Azorean archipelago. These are spreading throughout the islands and becoming common structural and agricultural pests. Two termites of the Kalotermitidae family, Cryp- totermes brevis (Walker) and Kalotermes flavicollis (Fabricius) are found on six and three of the islands, respectively. The other two species, the subterranean termites Reticulitermes grassei Clemént and R. flavipes (Kollar) of the Rhinotermitidae family are found only in confined areas of the cities of Horta (Faial) and Praia da Vitória (Terceira) respectively. Due to its location and weather conditions the Azorean archipelago is vulnerable to coloni- zation by invasive species. The fact that there are four different species of termites in the Azores, all of them considered pests, is a matter of concern. Here we present a comparative description of these species, their known distribution in the archipelago, which control measures are being used against them, and what can be done in the future to eradicate and control these pests in the Azores. -
Blattodea: Hodotermitidae) and Its Role As a Bioindicator of Heavy Metal Accumulation Risks in Saudi Arabia
Article Characterization of the 12S rRNA Gene Sequences of the Harvester Termite Anacanthotermes ochraceus (Blattodea: Hodotermitidae) and Its Role as A Bioindicator of Heavy Metal Accumulation Risks in Saudi Arabia Reem Alajmi 1,*, Rewaida Abdel-Gaber 1,2,* and Noura AlOtaibi 3 1 Zoology Department, College of Science, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia 2 Zoology Department, Faculty of Science, Cairo University, Cairo 12613, Egypt 3 Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Taif University, Taif 21974, Saudi Arabia; [email protected] * Correspondence: [email protected] (R.A.), [email protected] (R.A.-G.) Received: 28 December 2018; Accepted: 3 February 2019; Published: 8 February 2019 Abstract: Termites are social insects of economic importance that have a worldwide distribution. Identifying termite species has traditionally relied on morphometric characters. Recently, several mitochondrial genes have been used as genetic markers to determine the correlation between different species. Heavy metal accumulation causes serious health problems in humans and animals. Being involved in the food chain, insects are used as bioindicators of heavy metals. In the present study, 100 termite individuals of Anacanthotermes ochraceus were collected from two Saudi Arabian localities with different geoclimatic conditions (Riyadh and Taif). These individuals were subjected to morphological identification followed by molecular analysis using mitochondrial 12S rRNA gene sequence, thus confirming the morphological identification of A. ochraceus. Furthermore, a phylogenetic analysis was conducted to determine the genetic relationship between the acquired species and other termite species with sequences previously submitted in the GenBank database. Several heavy metals including Ca, Al, Mg, Zn, Fe, Cu, Mn, Ba, Cr, Co, Be, Ni, V, Pb, Cd, and Mo were measured in both collected termites and soil samples from both study sites. -
Intracolonial Demography of the Mound-Building Termite Macrotermes Natalensis (Haviland) (Isoptera, Termitidae) in the Northern Kruger National Park, South Africa
Insectes soc. 47 (2000) 390–397 0020-1812/00/040390-08 $ 1.50+0.20/0 Insectes Sociaux © Birkhäuser Verlag, Basel, 2000 Research article Intracolonial demography of the mound-building termite Macrotermes natalensis (Haviland) (Isoptera, Termitidae) in the northern Kruger National Park, South Africa V.W. Meyer 1, *, R.M. Crewe 1,L.E.O.Braack2, H.T. Groeneveld 3 and M.J. van der Linde 3 1 Department of Zoology and Entomology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, 0002, South Africa, e-mail: [email protected]; [email protected] 2 Department of Conservation Development, Kruger National Park, Skukuza, 1350, South Africa, e-mail: [email protected] 3 Department of Statistics, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, 0002, South Africa, e-mail: [email protected]; [email protected] * Correspondence address: PO Box 1969, Wingate Park, 0153, South Africa Received 14 January 2000; revised 18 September 2000; accepted 26 September 2000. Summary. This paper reports on the number of individuals todeally (from the rectum). Secondly, termites have been in Macrotermes natalensis (Hav.) colonies of different sized shown to fix nitrogen (Curtis and Waller, 1998). If the nitro- mounds in the northern Kruger National Park. Mounds were gen fixation rate per individual termite is known, caste num- fully excavated, termites collected by means of vacuuming, bers and proportions provided by the present study can be and colony size estimated by sub-sampling. The proportion used to accurately derive overall nitrogen fixation, as rates of of termites in the mound (above and underground sections) fixation vary among species and castes via microbes and amounts to more than 70% of the colony; the rest being pre- fungi (e.g., Matsumoto and Abe, 1979; Collins, 1983). -
Thèse Herbert J. GUEDEGBE
UNIVERSITE PARIS EST ECOLE DOCTORALE SCIENCE DE LA VIE ET DE LA SANTE N° attribué par la bibliothèque THESE Présentée pour l’obtention du grade de DOCTEUR DE L’UNIVERSITE PARIS EST Par Herbert Joseph GUEDEGBE Diversité, Origine et Caractérisation de la Mycoflore des Meules de Macrotermitinae (Isoptera, Termitidae) Spécialité Ecologie Microbienne Soutenue le 25 Septembre 2008 devant le jury composé de : Rapporteur Robin Duponnois (IRD) Rapporteur Pascal Houngnandan (Université d’Abomey-Calavi) Directeur de thèse Corinne Rouland-Lefèvre (IRD) Examinateur Evelyne Garnier-Zarli (Université Paris Est) Examinateur Céline Roose-Amsaleg (Université Paris VI) A mes parents A ma famille A mes amis A Samir 1 Cette thèse a été réalisée au Laboratoire d’Ecologie des Sols Tropicaux (LEST) de l’UMR IRD 137 Biosol. J’exprime donc en tout premier lieu ma profonde gratitude à Madame Corinne Rouland- Lefèvre, Directrice du LEST pour avoir accepté de diriger ce travail malgré ses multiples occupations et pour l’enthousiasme dont elle a fait preuve tout au long de cette thèse. Je remercie également Monsieur Pascal Houngnandan qui m’a ouvert les portes de son laboratoire d’écologie microbienne, offert de nombreuses facilités lors des missions d’échantillonnage, conseillé sur ma thèse en général et surtout pour avoir accepté d’en être rapporteur. Mes sincères remerciements vont ensuite à l’Institut de Recherche pour le Développement qui m’a octroyé une bourse de thèse de Doctorat à travers son programme de soutien de Doctorants. Un remerciement particulier à Laure Kpenou du DSF pour ses multiples conseils et pour son entière disponibilité. J’exprime ma profonde reconnaissance à Monsieur Robin Duponnois pour avoir accepté d’être rapporteur de cette thèse ainsi qu’à Mesdames Evelyne Garnier-Zarli & Céline Roose-Amsaleg pour avoir accepté de porter dans leur domaine respectif, un regard sur ce travail. -
The Effect of Grazing on Aardwolves and How Farmers in Namibia Perceive the Aardwolf
The effect of grazing on Aardwolves and how farmers in Namibia perceive the Aardwolf Jessica Fagerudd Arbetsgruppen för Tropisk Ekologi Minor Field Study 114 Committee of Tropical Ecology Uppsala University, Sweden September 2005 Uppsala The effect of grazing on Aardwolves and how farmers in Namibia perceive the Aardwolf Jessica Fagerudd Master Thesis in Zoo ecology, 20 p, Spring 2004 Department of Animal Ecology, Centre for Evolutionary Biology (EBC) Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden Supervisors: Professor Mats Björklund and Doctor Jennifer Lalley Abstract The distribution of the aardwolf (Proteles cristatus) is entirely dependent on the presence of termites, on which it feeds almost exclusively. Farmlands that are grazed by livestock are often suitable habitats for termites and hence for the aardwolf. However, many farmlands are nowadays being intensely grazed and this, together with difficult climate conditions, can act as a threat against the biodiversity and the wildlife, including the aardwolf. To test if the grazing of livestock affects this animal, a comparison of the relative population density of aardwolves was made between an ungrazed reserve and a grazed farm in the semi-desert of Namibia. The study was performed between March and May 2004. The results imply that grazing at a medium level favours the aardwolf. It also seems as intense grazing negatively affects termites, and if that is the case, the aardwolf would be negatively affected as well. Another possible threat against the aardwolf is that it sometimes is being killed because of the misbelief that it attacks livestock. To get an idea of this problem a limited number of interviews were done with farmers in the northern part of Namibia. -
Interactions Between Termite Mounds, Trees, and the Zemba Title People in the Mopane Savanna in Northwestern Namibia
View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by Kyoto University Research Information Repository Interactions between Termite Mounds, Trees, and the Zemba Title People in the Mopane Savanna in Northwestern Namibia Author(s) YAMASHINA, Chisato African study monographs. Supplementary issue (2010), 40: Citation 115-128 Issue Date 2010-03 URL http://dx.doi.org/10.14989/96293 Right Type Departmental Bulletin Paper Textversion publisher Kyoto University African Study Monographs, Suppl.40: 115-128, March 2010 115 INTERACTIONS BETWEEN TERMITE MOUNDS, TREES, AND THE ZEMBA PEOPLE IN THE MOPANE SAVANNA IN NORTH- WESTERN NAMIBIA Chisato YAMASHINA Graduate School of Asian and African Area Studies, Kyoto University ABSTRACT Termite mounds comprise a significant part of the landscape in northwestern Namibia. The vegetation type in this area is mopane vegetation, a vegetation type unique to southern Africa. In the area where I conducted research, almost all termite mounds coex- isted with trees, of which 80% were mopane. The rate at which trees withered was higher on the termite mounds than outside them, and few saplings, seedlings, or grasses grew on the mounds, indicating that termite mounds could cause trees to wither and suppress the growth of plants. However, even though termite mounds appeared to have a negative impact on veg- etation, they could actually have positive effects on the growth of mopane vegetation. More- over, local people use the soil of termite mounds as construction material, and this utilization may have an effect on vegetation change if they are removing the mounds that are inhospita- ble for the growth of plants. -
Fungal Diversity and Community Structure in Gut, Mound and Surrounding Soil of Fungus-Cultivating Termites
Vol. 11(12), pp. 504-515, 28 March, 2017 DOI: 10.5897/AJMR2017.8484 Article Number: 99A19BE63526 ISSN 1996-0808 African Journal of Microbiology Research Copyright © 2017 Author(s) retain the copyright of this article http://www.academicjournals.org/AJMR Full Length Research Paper Fungal diversity and community structure in gut, mound and surrounding soil of fungus-cultivating termites Huxley Mae Makonde1,2*, Romano Mwirichia3, Edith Mnyazi Muwawa4, Hans-Peter Klenk5 and Hamadi Iddi Boga6 1Department of Microorganisms, Leibniz-Institute DSMZ (German Collection of Microorganisms and Cell Cultures), Braunschweig, Germany. 2Department of Pure and Applied Sciences, Technical University of Mombasa, Mombasa, Kenya. 3Department of Biological Sciences, Embu University, Embu, Kenya. 4Department of Biological Sciences, Pwani University, Kilifi, Kenya. 5School of Biology, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK. 6School of Agriculture, Earth and Environmental Sciences, Taita Taveta University, Voi, Kenya. Received 13.February, 2017; Accepted 9 March, 2017 The fungus-cultivating termites (Macrotermitinae) form part of diverse termite fauna in Africa, but information on their fungal symbionts is inadequate and poorly understood. In this study, the fungal communities and structure between termite gut, mound and surrounding soil were determined using the 454 pyrosequencing-based analysis of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) gene sequences. Genomic DNA was extracted and purified from the guts of three termites (Odontotermes sp., Macrotermes michaelseni and Microtermes sp.), mound and surrounding soil samples for high- throughput sequencing. A total of 15,256 sequences were obtained and individual samples contained between 4 and 133 operational taxonomic units (OTUs). Termite gut had the least fungal diversity, dominated by members of the Basidiomycota (> 98%).