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Issue: Vol. 5507 No. 1: 11 Sept. 2024
Type: Article
Published: 2024-09-11
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5507.1.2
Page range: 57-78
Abstract views: 138
PDF downloaded: 99

Expanded range of Nasutitermes callimorphus Mathews, 1977 (Isoptera: Termitidae: Nasutitermitinae), comparison with N. corniger (Motschulsky, 1855) and N. ephratae (Holmgren, 1910), and synonymy of N. dasyopsis Thorne, 1989 into N. nigriceps (Haldeman, 1854)

Fort Lauderdale Research and Education Center; University of Florida; Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences; 3205 College Avenue; Davie; Florida; 33314; USA
Behavioral and Evolutionary Ecology; CP 160/12; Université Libre de Bruxelles; Av. F.D. Roosevelt 50; B - 1050 Brussels; Belgium
Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology; 217 Plant Science Bldg.; University of Arkansas; Fayetteville; AR 72701; USA
BASF Corporation; 26 Davis Drive; P.O. Box 13528; Research Triangle Park; NC 27709; USA
Behavioral and Evolutionary Ecology; CP 160/12; Université Libre de Bruxelles; Av. F.D. Roosevelt 50; B - 1050 Brussels; Belgium
Isoptera taxonomy molecular genetics Neotropics Nasutitermes corniger N. dasyopsis N. ephratae N. nigriceps

Abstract

The imago of N. callimorphus is described for the first time. Nasutitermes callimorphus occurs from Mexico to Paraguay. Nasutitermes callimorphus is smaller in all measurements but generally resembles its widely distributed sympatric congeners, N. corniger (Motschulsky, 1855) and N. ephratae (Holmgren, 1910). Molecular phylogenetic analysis of a portion of the mitochondrial 16S rRNA gene and the COII mtDNA marker revealed that N. callimorphus forms a distinct clade using both maximum parsimony and maximum likelihood analysis. Unlike N. corniger and N. ephratae, N. callimorphus does not build epigeal or arboreal carton nests. We further regard N. dasyopsis Thorne, 1989 as a junior synonym of N. nigriceps (Haldeman, 1854).

 

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