Skip to main content Skip to main navigation menu Skip to site footer
Responsive image
Issue: Vol. 1012 No. 1: 28 Jun. 2005
Type: Articles
Published: 2005-06-28
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.1012.1.4
Page range: 39–44
Abstract views: 69
PDF downloaded: 5

A new termite species from Iran, Microcerotermes shahroudiensis sp. nov. (Isoptera: Termitidae)

Plant Pests and Diseases Research Institute, P.O. Box 1454, Tehran 19395, Iran
Isoptera Termitidae new species description Iran

Abstract

Microcerotermes Silvestri is a cosmopolitan genus and is distributed in all zoogeographical regions, with the exception of the Nearctic. During the study of Iranian termite fauna, specimens of Microcerotermes were collected from Shahroud, Iran. Morphological studies indicated that specimens belonged to a new species. This species comes closest to Microcerotermes varaminicus Ghayourfar, but soldiers differ in possessing darker head-capsule and distinct postclypeus demarcated from frons.

References

  1. Ahmad, M. (1955) Termites of West Pakistan. Biologia, 1, 202–226.

    Akhtar, M. (1974) New termites from Pakistan. Biologia, 20, 24–62.

    Badawi, A., Dabbour, A. & Faragalla, A.A. (1982) A contribution to the termite fauna of Saudi Arabia. Sociobiology, 7, 259–260.

    Chhotani, O.B. & Bose, G. (1979) Insects of Saudi Arabia. In: Wittmer, W. & Buettiker, G. (Eds.) Fauna of Saudi Arabia. Natural History Museum, 1, 75–83.

    Ghayourfar, R. (2000) Biosystematic Study of Termite Fauna of Iran. Ph.D. thesis, Tehran University, 322 ppp.

    Ghayourfar, R. & Esmaili, M. (1993) Introduction of Microcerotermes buettikeri Chhotani & Bose and its morphological comparison with Microcerotermes diversus Silvestri and Microcerotermes gabrielis Weidner. Proceeding of the 11th plant protection congress of Iran, Rasht, Volume I, Pests, 259 pp.

    Silvestri, F. (1920) A new termite from Mesopotamia. Annals and Magazine of Natural History, 6, 477–479.

    Weidner, H. (1955) A new termite species from the Near East. Social Insects, 2, 63–86.

    Weidner, H. (1960) Die termiten von Afghanistan, Iran und Irak (Contribution à l'étude de la fauna d'Afghanistan 29). Abhandlungen und Verhandlungen des Naturwissenschaftlichen Vereins in Hamburg [N.F.] 4, 43–70.