Expanded New World Distributions of Genera in the Termite Family Kalotermitidae

The New World Kalotermitidae constitute about one-fourth of all termite species in this region. The geographic distributions of all fifteen kalotermitid genera are updated based on records in the University of Florida Termite Collection and in the literature.  Range-appropriate exotic records of four pest species are also given.  New distribution records are presented on maps, and representative soldier photographs are provided for each genus

Global elevational, latitudinal, and climatic limits for termites and the redescription of Rugitermes laticollis Snyder (Isoptera: Kalotermitidae) from the Andean Highlands

We compile, map, and discuss global elevational, latitudinal, thermal, and rainfall extremes of termite localities from literature sources and unpublished records. Rugitermes laticollis from Ecuador and Bolivia occurs at higher elevation (2700-3600 m) than any other termite species.  Termites span the globe from 54.3°N (Zootermopsis angusticollis in British Columbia (B.C.), Canada) to 48.9°S (Porotermes quadricollis in Magdalena, Chile).  The coldest locality supporting termites (Reticulitermes sp.) is at Churn Creek, B.C., where the mean annual temperature is 4°C.   Lake Havasu City, Arizona, where Heterotermes aureus and Gnathamitermes perplexus occur, has the highest recorded temperature maximum (52°C) for a termite locality.  Cryptotermes brevis and Neotermes chilensis are endemic to the Pacific Coast of Peru and Chile where rain is essentially absent.  We further provide locality extremes for six termite families from six zoogeographical regions.  In addition, the winged imago of Ru. laticollis is redescribed and the soldier is described for the first time

Revised systematic position of Nasutitermes brevipilus Emerson, 1925 (Isoptera: Termitidae: Nasutitermitinae) and the designation of Hyleotermes gen. nov.

A new monotypic nasute termite genus, Hyleotermes gen. nov., is proposed for Nasutitermes brevipilus Emerson, 1925. Hyleotermes brevipilus, comb. nov., is redescribed and illustrated based on the morphology of the imago, soldier, and worker castes. It is expanded into Amazonia. The soldier of Hyleotermes differs from that of Nasutitermes Dudley, 1890 in that the former has a long and cylindrical nasus and the head capsule lacks long setae and is covered with microscopic setae. Unlike the worker of Nasutitermes, the Hyleotermes worker has a short mixed segment and an enteric valve is adorned with narrow spines on conical bases. The phylogenetic position of H. brevipilus comb nov., is reconstructed based on a dataset with two mitochondrial markers (COI and 16SrRNA) for 36 terminals, under maximum likelihood and Bayesian inference. Results corroborate that this species is unrelated to Nasutitermes and should be excluded from the genus.Fil: Cuezzo, Adriana Carolina. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Instituto de Ecología Regional. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Instituto de Ecología Regional; ArgentinaFil: Scheffrahn, Rudolf H.. University of Florida; Estados UnidosFil: Constantino, Reginaldo. Universidade do Brasília; Brasi

Survivorship of the Formosan Subterranean Termite (Isoptera: Rhinotermitidae) in a Hypoxic Environment

The Formosan subterranean termite, Coptotermes formosanus Shiraki, is a structural pest of major economic importance in the city of New Orleans, Louisiana.  Hurricane Katrina made landfall along the United States Gulf coast on August 29, 2005, inundating approximately 80% of the city.  Though termite colonies survived prolonged inundation, the survival mechanisms of colonies have yet to be fully understood.  One hypothesis is that C. formosanus colonies survived within pockets of trapped air within their nesting system during times of flooding.  This hypothesis was tested by measuring mortality of groups of 20, 40, and 60 termites in airtight environments maintained at three different temperatures.  Groups of 20 termites maintained at 10, 21, and 32°C reached 100% mortality at 89.5, 52.0, and 3.5 days, respectively.  Groups of 40 termites maintained at 10, 21, and 32°C reached 100% mortality at 89.5, 51.0, and 3.5 days, respectively.  Groups of 60 termites maintained at 10, 21, and 32°C yielded 100% mortality at 57.5, 22.5, and 1.0 day, respectively.  Field colonies of C. formosanus established before Hurricane Katrina survived up to three weeks of flooding, and our findings suggest that is possible for inundated colonies to survive this prolonged flooding by remaining within air pockets located in their nesting system until flood waters recede

Introdução da térmita da madeira seca Cryptotermes brevis (Walker) nos Açores

A secção Biologia é coordenada pelo Professor Universitário Armindo Rodrigues.A térmita de madeira seca Cryptotermes brevis (Walker) é uma praga urbana que causa danos graves a estruturas de madeira, afectando todos os tipos de equipamentos desde os rodapés, portas, mobiliário e partes estruturais da habitação. Existente principalmente nas zonas tropicais e subtropicais do globo, esta espécie é originaria do Chile e do Peru e poderá ter-se dispersado pelo mundo, numa fase inicial, através do tráfego elevado de navios de madeira espanhóis provenientes dessa zona no século XVI. Esta térmita passa a maior parte do seu ciclo de vida dentro da madeira, factor que facilita o seu transporte e dispersão, uma vez que a sua detecção é difícil por não especialistas. A sua presença nos Açores é conhecida desde o ano de 2000, altura em que foi identificada a sua presença na Ilha Terceira. Desde então a sua presença já foi confirmada para seis das nove ilhas do arquipélago dos Açores, nomeadamente Terceira, São Miguel, Santa Maria, Faial, São Jorge e Pico. […].info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Relative occurrence of the family Kalotermitidae (Isoptera) under different termite sampling methods

The termite family Kalotermitidae constitutes a wood-nesting termite family that accounts for about 15% of all extant termite species. In recent decades, field studies have been carried out to assess termite diversity in various wooded habitats and geographic locations. Three sampling methods have been favored expert, transect, and alate light-trap surveys. Expert collecting is not spatially quantifiable but relies on field personnel to recognize and sample termite niches. The transect method aims to standardize and quantify termite abundance and diversity. Light trapping is a passive method for sampling nocturnal alate flights. We compared our expert survey results and results of published sampling methods for their proportional yields of kalotermitid versus non-kalotermitid encounters. Using an odds ratio statistic, we found that worldwide, there is about a 50.6-fold greater likelihood of encountering a kalotermitid sample versus a non-kalotermitid using the expert survey method and a 15.3-fold greater likelihood using alate trapping than using the transect method. There is about a 3.3 -fold greater likelihood of collecting a kalotermitid specimen versus a non-kalotermitid sample using the expert survey method than using the alate trap method. Transect studies in which only termite species diversity was reported gave similar low Kalotermitidae yields. We propose that multiple biases in sampling methodology include tools, time constraints, habitat type, geographical location, topographical conditions, and human traits account for the divergent outcomes in sampling the abundance and diversity of Kalotermitidae compared to other termite families

Termites (Blattodea: Isoptera) of Canada, continental USA, and Mexico: an identification key to families and genera, checklist of species, and new records for Mexico

An illustrated identification key to the North American termite families and genera based mainly on the soldier caste is proposed. A checklist of termites (Insecta: Blattodea: Isoptera) of Canada, continental USA and Mexico is presented, listing 89 species (and two subspecies) grouped in 26 genera and four families. Five species are added to the Mexican termite fauna, these records are for the states of Campeche: Cryptotermes cavifrons; Quintana Roo: Cryptotermes cavifrons, Neotermes holmgreni, Neotermes phragmosus, Neotermes mona; Sonora: Incisitermes banksi; and Yucatan: Neotermes phragmosus. Other 32 new state records are made for the states of Aguascalientes, Baja California Sur, Campeche, Chiapas, Jalisco, Nuevo Leon, Oaxaca, Quintana Roo, Sonora, and Yucatan. The species Coptotermes crassus, Coptotermes havilandi, Incisitermes perparvus, Microcerotermes strunckii, Nasutitermes costalis, Incisitermes nigritus and Termes melindae are eliminated from the termite fauna of this region.Se propone una clave de identificación para las familias y géneros de termitas norteamericanas basadas principalmente en la casta soldado. Se presenta un listado de termitas (Insecta: Blattodea: Isoptera) de Canadá, EE. UU. continental, y México, enlistando 89 especies (y dos subespecies) agrupadas en 26 géneros y cuatro familias. Cinco especies son añadidas a la termitofauna mexicana, estos registros son para los estados de Campeche: Cryptotermes cavifrons; Quintana Roo: Cryptotermes cavifrons, Neotermes holmgreni, Neotermes phragmosus, Neotermes mona; Sonora: Incisitermes banksi; y Yucatán: Neotermes phragmosus. Se hacen otros 32 nuevos registros estatales para los estados de Aguascalientes, Baja California Sur, Campeche, Chiapas, Jalisco, Nuevo León, Oaxaca, Quintana Roo, Sonora, y Yucatán. Las especies Coptotermes crassus, Coptotermes havilandi, Incisitermes perparvus, Microcerotermes strunckii, Nasutitermes costalis, Incisitermes nigritus, y Termes melindae son eliminadas de la termitofauna de esta región

Co-evolution is the primary force shaping termite gut microbial communities

Tese de Mestrado em Robótica apresentada à Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia da Universidade de CoimbraThis work is integrated in a project of development of a novel measurement device, the BMG-4 sensor, and its application in the calibration of industrial robots. The aim of the work is to define procedures and strategies that enable, through the BMG-4, to identify both geometric and compliance errors that are present in 6-axes serial industrial robots. The importance of accuracy and robot calibration as well as the problem of the suitability of most measurement systems to industrial environments is highlighted. Consequently, the BMG-4 is introduced as a solution that meets the demands of those conditions. A geometrical methodology is defined to determine the direction of a robot’s axis and to assess its accuracy. A protocol that allows to identify the real angular geometric parameters of the robot, as well as the offsets of some axes is presented. Then, a strategy is developed in order to be able to identify the compliances of the last five axes of the robot. All the tests are performed in an ABB IRB 6600 industrial robot. For axes 2 and 3, the maximum values obtained for inaccuracy are 0,062° and 0,229°, respectively. Also, the robot presents several considerable joints’ offsets errors. For axes 4 and 5 those values are −0,99° and 0,83°. The combined offset of axes 2 and 3 is −0,28°. The stiffness of axis 2 is determined, having an estimated value of 2,4 × 106 N.m/rad. Finally, a standard robot convention is proposed in order to correct the identified errors with a generalized compensation algorithm.Este trabalho está integrado num projeto de desenvolvimento de um novo dispositivo de medição, o sensor BMG-4, e da sua aplicação na calibração de robôs industriais. O objetivo do trabalho é a definição de procedimentos e estratégias que permitem, através do BMG-4, identificar erros provenientes tanto da geometria como da flexibilidade das articulações do robô que estão presentes em robôs industriais de 6-eixos. A importância da precisão e da calibração robótica, bem como o problema da adequação da maioria dos sistemas de medição em ambientes industriais são destacados. Consequentemente, o BMG-4 é introduzido como uma solução que satisfaz essas condições. Uma metodologia geométrica é definida para determinar a direção do eixo de um robô e para avaliar a sua precisão. Um protocolo que permite identificar os parâmetros geométricos angulares reais do robô, bem como os offsets de alguns eixos, é apresentado. Em seguida, uma estratégia é desenvolvida de maneira a identificar os valores de rigidez dos últimos cinco eixos do robô. Todos os testes são realizados no robô industrial ABB IRB 6600. Para os eixos 2 e 3, os valores máximos obtidos para a análise da imprecisão são 0,062° e 0,229°, respectivamente. Além disso, o robô apresenta erros de offset consideráveis. Para os eixos 4 e 5 esses valores são −0,99° e 0,83°. O valor combinado dos eixos 2 e 3 é −0,28°. A rigidez do eixo 2 é determinada, tendo um valor estimado de 2,4 × 106 N.m/rad. Finalmente, uma convenção standard de robôs é proposta e cuja finalidade é corrigir os erros previamente identificados através de um algoritmo de compensação global e independente do fabricante do robô considerado

Reverse taxonomy for elucidating diversity of insect-associated nematodes: a case study with termites

BACKGROUND: The molecular operational taxonomic unit(MOTU)has recently been applied to microbial and microscopic animal biodiversity surveys. However, in many cases, some of the MOTUs cannot be definitively tied to any of the taxonomic groups in current databases. To surmount these limitations, the concept of "reverse taxonomy" has been proposed, i.e. to primarily list the MOTUs with morphological information, and then identify and/or describe them at genus/species level using subsamples or by re-isolating the target organisms. Nevertheless, the application of "reverse taxonomy" has not been sufficiently evaluated. Therefore, the practical applicability of "reverse taxonomy" is tested using termite-associated nematodes as a model system for phoretic/parasitic organisms which have high habitat specificity and a potential handle (their termite host species) for re-isolation attempts. METHODOLOGY: Forty-eight species (from 298 colonies) of termites collected from the American tropics and subtropics were examined for their nematode associates using the reverse taxonomy method and culturing attempts (morphological identification and further sequencing efforts). The survey yielded 51 sequence types (= MOTUs) belonging to 19 tentatively identified genera. Within these, four were identified based on molecular data with preliminary morphological observation, and an additional seven were identified or characterized from successful culturing, leaving eight genera unidentified. CONCLUSIONS: That 1/3 of the genera were not successfully identified suggests deficiencies in the depth of available sequences in the database and biological characters, i.e. usually isolated as phoretic/parasitic stages which are not available for morphological identification, and too many undiscovered lineages of nematodes. Although there still is the issue of culturability of nematodes, culturing attempts could help to make reverse taxonomy methods more effective. However, expansion of the database, i.e., production of more DNA barcodes tied to biological information by finding and characterizing additional new and known lineages, is necessary for analyzing functional diversity.Natsumi Kanzaki, Robin M. Giblin-Davis, Rudolf H. Scheffrahn, Hisatomo Taki, Alejandro Esquivel, Kerrie A. Davies and E. Allen Herr