Coptotermes Wasmann, 1896

Takematsu, Yoko & Vongkaluang, Charunee, 2012, A taxonomic review of the Rhinotermitidae (Isoptera) of Thailand, Journal of Natural History 46 (17 - 18), pp. 1079-1109 : 1083-1084

Coptotermes Wasmann, 1896

Type species: Coptotermes gestroi ( Wasmann, 1896)

The genus is one of the most serious wood pests in the world. There are nearly 80 species recorded in the world and 60 species have been described from the Oriental region. In Thailand, five species were recorded by Ahmad (1965).

Thirty of the 60 Oriental species have been described from China between 1984 and 1986 ( Huang et al. 1989). However, most of these 30 species named from China were erected based on slight differences of head size despite their wide intraspecific variation in size, or described as new species having dimorphic soldiers if huge intraspecific variations were recognized. In this paper, our specimens are not compared with the Chinese species because it has been impossible to access the specimens. Xia and He (1986) erected two subgenera, Oligocrinitermes and Polycrinitermes , based to the number of setae behind the fontanelle and antennal sockets without giving full descriptions of these subgenera. Instead, they offered only short remarks in the Chinese key to justify the division of Coptotermes into these two subgenera. I do not accept this classification because no taxonomic or phylogenetic evidence has been given to support their subgeneric diagnostic characters. Xia and He (1986) also transferred the type species of the genus, C. gestroi , into the subgenus Oligocrinitermes . However, according to ICZN, the type species has to belong to the nominotypical subgenus (Article 44.1). Therefore the subgenus Oligocrinitermes is unavailable as the subgenus of gestroi .

Diagnosis

Monomorphic soldiers. Head oval to subrectangular. Fontanelle prominent, large, with a round opening. Eyes absent. Labrum subtriangular, with a small pointed hyaline tip. Left mandible with crenulations in basal half and a large, knob-shaped basal projection; right mandible without crenulations or teeth. Postmentum club-shaped. Pronotum flat.

Key to species of Coptotermes in Thailand

1. Larger species, HL more than 1.5 mm. Head capsule moderately hairy ( Figure 3A ). Mandibles strongly incurved ( Figure 3E )..................................................................... C. curvignathus Holmgren Smaller species, HL less than 1.5 mm. Head sparsely hairy. Mandibles weakly incurved................................................................ 2

2. Head moderately narrowed anteriorly, with bHW / mHW more than 0.58. Narrowest part of postmentum located about half way between the widest point and the posterior margin ( Figure 4D )........... C. gestroi (Wasmann) Head greatly narrowed anteriorly, with bHW / mHW less than 0.55. Narrowest part of postmentum located about one-third of the distance from the posterior margin to the widest point ( Figure 5D )................................... 3

3. Smaller species, HL less than 1.2 mm ................ C. kalshoveni Kemner Larger species, HL more than 1.4 mm ................ C. premrasmii Ahmad

Figures

Figure 3. Soldier of Coptotermes curvignathus Holmgren. (A) Head, dorsal view; (B) head, lateral view; (C) pronotum; (D) postmentum; (E) mandibles. Scale bar 0.5 mm.

Figure 4. Soldier of Coptotermes gestroi (Wasmann). (A) Head, dorsal view; (B) head, lateral view; (C) pronotum; (D) postmentum; (E) mandibles. Scale bar 0.5 mm.

Figure 5. Soldier of Coptotermes kalshoveni Kemner. (A) Head, dorsal view; (B) head, lateral view; (C) pronotum; (D) postmentum; (E) mandibles. Scale bar 0.5 mm.