Ruptitermes araujoi, Acioli, Agno Nonato Serrão & Constantino, Reginaldo, 2015

Acioli, Agno Nonato Serrão & Constantino, Reginaldo, 2015, A taxonomic revision of the neotropical termite genus Ruptitermes (Isoptera, Termitidae, Apicotermitinae), Zootaxa 4032 (5), pp. 451-492 : 455-456

Ruptitermes araujoi , new species

Holotype: worker from lot UnB-0225

Type-locality: BRAZIL: São Paulo: Pitangueiras (lat 21.02S long 48.22W)

Type-repository: UnB.

Paratypes: BRAZIL: Ceará: Barbalha, Chapada do Araripe, 04.ii.2011, F.M.S. Moura col., workers (UnB- 8917). Crato, 05.x.2004, A. Vasconcellos col., workers (UnB-6741). Goiás: Catalão, iii.2005, D.E. Oliveira col., workers (UnB-10609). Formosa, Fazenda Santo Antonio, 31.i.2012, R. Constantino col., workers (UnB-8446). São Domingos, Monte Alto, 06.ix.2003, D.L. Bernardo col., workers (UnB-10610). Niquelândia, 17.vi.2006, D.G. Pinheiro col., workers (UnB-9901, UnB-9902). Mato Grosso: Chapada dos Guimarães, APM Manso, 18.v.1999, R. Constantino col., workers (UnB-1681). Cotriguaçu, Fazenda São Nicolau, 04.vii.2002, R. Constantino col., workers (UnB-3349). São Paulo: Pitangueiras, 12.xi.1995, E.P. Teixeira col., workers, imagoes (UnB-0225). Tocantins: Dianópolis, Fazenda Novo Iguaçu, 01.x.2003, F. Godoy col., workers (UnB-5183, UnB-5185). Pium, Parque Estadual do Cantão, 31.v.2007, R. Constantino col., workers (UnB-6750).

Etymology. Named in honor of the Brazilian entomologist Renato Lion Araujo (1912–1978), for his important contribution to the study of neotropical termites.

Imago ( Fig. 1 ). Head capsule dark reddish brown, paler around antennal sockets and darker around ocelli, with many long bristles and densely covered with short hairs, about 1/5 of the length of bristles. Eyes rounded, relatively small. Fontanelle oval, large and conspicuous, nearly white. Ocelli small, distant from eyes. Frontal marks oval, depressed, paler than head capsule. Postclypeus light brown, with many bristles and dense short hairs. Antenna light brown, same color as postclypeus. Mandibles similar to those of R. xanthochiton . Pronotum about the same width as head; anterior margin concave; lateral margins convex, converging posteriorly; light brown, with a conspicuous elongate, white spot on midline close to anterior lobe and a smaller posterior spot; with many bristles and dense short hairs. Scutum brown, a little darker than pronotum. Anterior region of scutellum a little paler than scutum; posterior margin brownish yellow. Pleural sclerites and coxae light brown; femur and tibia brownish yellow. Tergites light brown, a little paler than pronotum; sternites paler than tergites. Measurements in Table 1 .

Worker ( Figs. 2 , 22 A, 24A). Head capsule large and rounded, reddish brown, region around antennal sockets paler; with sparse bristles and no short hairs. Postclypeus large and inflated, paler than head capsule, usually with a single bristle near the center of each lobe. Fontanelle large and conspicuous, rounded to elliptical. Frontal marks elliptical, a little paler than head capsule. Mandibles similar to those of R. xanthochiton . Procoxa typically with 10 spine-like bristles on anterior surface distributed roughly around a elliptical line ( Fig. 2 C). Thoracic nota and tergites brown, paler than head capsule. Tergites with two rows of bristles and many short hairs. Dehiscent glands large, filling up to 1/4 of the volume of the abdomen. Enteric valve armature unsclerotized, without spines, reticulated with large cells ( Fig. 24 A). Measurements in Table 2 .

Comparisons. The worker of R. araujoi is easily recognized by the presence of about 10 spine-like bristles on procoxa, large and inflated postclypeus, large and conspicuous fontanelle, and sparse bristles on head. The enteric valve is similar to that of R. reconditus .

Distribution. Ruptitermes araujoi occurs mainly in the Cerrado region ( Fig. 26 ), in dry forests, gallery forests, and dense cerrado (“cerradão”). Two records are from the Caatinga region, in forest habitats. The nest is subterranean.

Figures

FIGURE 1. Imago of Ruptitermes araujoi, sp. n. A, head in profile; B, head in dorsal view; C, pterothorax in dorsal view; D, pronotum in dorsal view.

FIGURE 2. Worker of Ruptitermes araujoi, sp. n. A, habitus; B, protibia; C, procoxae; D, head in profile; E, head in dorsal view; F, mandibles.

FIGURE 22. Worker heads of Ruptitermes, showing pilosity. All figures in the same scale.

FIGURE 24. Enteric valve armature of workers of Ruptitermes. A, R. araujoi; B – D, R. arboreus; E – F, R. atyra; G, R. bandeirai; H – I, R. cangua; J – K, R. franciscoi. Scale bars = 0.1 mm.

FIGURE 26. Geographic range of Ruptitermes araujoi, sp. n., R. arboreus (Emerson 1925), and R. atyra, sp. n.

Tables

TABLE 1. Measurements of imagoes of Ruptitermes, range and mean (mm). LH: length of head; WH: width of head; WE 1: maximum width of eye; WE 2: minimum width of eye; LPC: length of postclypeus; WPC: width of postclypeus; WPr: width of pronotum; LT: length of protibia; n: number of specimens measured; (m): male; (f): female; (*) indicates n = 1 for specific measurements due to incomplete specimen.

Species LH	WH	WE1	WE2	LPC	WPC	WPr	LT	n
R. araujoi (m) 1.25–1.31 (1.28)	1.82	0.39–0.42 (0.41)	0.38	0.29–0.31 (0.30)	0.72–0.73 (0.73)	1.51–1.60 (1.55)	1.40	2
R. araujoi (f) 1.40	1.92–1.93 (1.93)	0.41–0.43 (0.42)	0.40–0.41 (0.41)	0.28–0.33 (0.31)	0.79	1.66–1.77 (1.71)	1.40	2
R. arboreus (f) 1.18	1.66–1.76 (1.71)	0.36–0.46 (0.41)	0.33–0.39 (0.36)	0.29–0.30 (0.30)	0.70–0.79 (0.75)	1.42–1.58 (1.49)	1.33–1.36 (1.35)	3
R. franciscoi (m) 1.11–1.14 (1.12)	1.60–1.66 (1.64)	0.34–0.36 (0.35)	0.32–0.34 (0.33)	0.28–0.32 (0.30)	0.72–0.74 (0.73)	1.44–1.52 (1.47)	1.24–1.28 (1.25)	3
R. franciscoi (f) 1.20–1.27 (1.23)	1.73–1.80 (1.77)	0.36–0.39 (0.38)	0.34–0.37 (0.36)	0.30–0.34 (0.32)	0.75–0.79 (0.77)	1.58–1.68 (1.63)	1.26–1.30 (1.29)	3
R. kaapora (m) 1.24*	1.79*	0.37	0.36	0.37–0.39 (0.38)	0.75*	1.52–1.54 (1.53)	1.39–1.45 (1.42)	2
R. kaapora (f) 1.32–1.33 (1.33)	1.84–1.87 (1.86)	0.38–0.40 (0.39)	0.36–0.37 (0.37)	0.39–0.40 (0.40)	0.79–0.80 (0.80)	1.60–1.70 (1.65)	1.42–1.43 (1.43)	2
R. pitan (m) 1.52	1.98	0.42	0.41	0.42	0.91	1.62	1.6	1
R. pitan (f) 1.64	2.20	0.49	0.46	0.46	1.00	1.9	1.6	1
R. reconditus (m) 0.98–1.03 (1.00)	1.48–1.50 (1.49)	0.35–037 (0.36)	0.33	0.24–0.25 (0.24)	0.56–0.59 (0.58)	1.27–1.31 (1.29)	1.15–1.19 (1.17)	3
R. reconditus (f) 1.07–1.20 (1.14)	1.63–1.66 (1.64)	0.39–0.40 (0.39)	0.34–0.37 (0.36)	0.26–0.27 (0.26)	0.59–0.63 (0.61)	1.37–1.45 (1.40)	1.13–1.20 (1.17)	3
R. xanthochiton 1.07–1.13 (m) (1.09)	1.56–1.59 (1.57)	0.35–0.37 (0.36)	0.32–0.34 (0.33)	0.27–0.28 (0.27)	0.60–0.65 (0.62)	1.28–1.32 (1.30)	1.18–1.23 (1.21)	3
R. xanthochiton 1.13–1.22 (f) (1.17)	1.66–1.76 (1.70)	0.39–0.41 (0.40)	0.33–0.34 (0.34)	0.28–0.30 (0.29)	0.66–0.70 (0.68)	1.47–1.55 (1.50)	1.26–1.27 (1.27)	3