Amitermes is an interesting genus of termite, with many species distributed worldwide. The most well known are the mound building species from Australia, Amitermes meridionalis, the so-called Magnetic Termites. Amitermes species occur worldwide, and build a variety of nests ranging from subterranean to surface mounds, to aerial nests.
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Archives for Termite pictures
Termite pictures – Reticulitermes species
The following photos were sent by a reader, Angela, from Nashville, Tennessee. While poking around in the garden, the reader came across some white colored insects and wondered if they might be termites. She dropped me an email to ask my opinion. With her kind permission, I’d like to share some of the photos here.
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Termite pictures – Longipeditermes longipes
Longipeditermes longipes is a single species forest dwelling nasute genus that is dark in color, and is often seen openly foraging for food on the floor of the tropical forests of Malaysia and Borneo. There is no other species in this genus; it is a monotypic genus. Their foraging columns may stretch for nearly 100 meters (330 feet), in which workers fan out from their nests in search of lichen, ascending trees and lianas to get to them, which they then chew into balls and transport back home in a seemingly endless procession.
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Termite pictures – Microtermes pakistanicus
Microtermes is a genus of Macrotermitinae that is so named because it is the opposite of Macrotermes, being pretty small in size, but still recognizably one of the Macrotermitinae, as can be inferred from the appearance of the workers. This particular species is likely to be Macrotermes pakistanicus, a wide ranging Microtermes species found in Pakistan eastwards to Thailand. They are highly common in agricultural estates.
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Dicuspiditermes
Dicuspiditermes is a genus closely related to Pericapritermes but can be distinguished by the front of the head steeply sloping downward (in the soldier). It is only found in the Oriental region, and confined to forested areas. The genus is unique in that the soldiers look distinctive, having overly large heads in proportion to their body making them clumsy outside their nests, whilst their mandibles are highly elongated and odd-looking, and work by means of flicking off advancing ants in the close confines of their tunnels.
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The flying termites or alates
There are lots of misconceptions about flying termites or termite alates. In scientific lingo, we call them imagos or alates (winged reproductives). Some people think these flying termites can attack wood. Others think these flying termites can fight (with ants). The truth is, these flying termites are winged reproductives that comprise either males or females whose sole purpose is to start new colonies and become the future king and queen of their new colony.
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Termite pictures – Coptotermes curvignathus
Coptotermes curvignathus (Holmgren) from the genus Coptotermes is a destructive termite species of tree plantations in South East Asia and attacks live trees. It is similar to other Coptotermes species like Coptotermes travians and Coptotermes gestroi with the main differences in its being larger, and having strong incurved mandibles, and also a distinctive habit of attacking trees by encasing the surface of the tree trunk with a layer of soil.
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The Nasutitermitinae termites
The Nasutitermitinae subfamily from the Termitidae family of termites is a very large category comprising many species spread throughout the Old and New World, of which there remains some species yet to be identified properly. However, all the Nasutitermitinae species can be recognized by their soldiers having a pointed snout at the front of their heads, called a nasus, and in virtually all species, the soldiers are smaller than the workers in terms of size. As a whole, they are mostly small termites.
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Termite pictures – Coptotermes gestroi
Coptotermes gestroi or the Asian Subterranean Termite is one of the most destructive termites in Asia (along with the Formosan Subterranean Termite), responsible for much of the termite damage statistics reported. Small and hardy, Coptotermes gestroi has been reported in new countries outside of its native range, including Australia and parts of USA, indicating an ability to adapt to new environments easily.
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Termite pictures – Macrotermes gilvus
Macrotermes gilvus (Macrotimitinae) is the most common mound building termite throughout South East Asia, but at the same time, there are also several subspecies which have slight variation, mostly in terms of size. They build a stout mound which under good conditions, may attain large size, and reach almost 2 meters in height.
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