A review of the Mastotermitidae (Isoptera), including a new fossil genus from Brazil

Related Titles

Series: American Museum novitates, no. 2236

By

Emerson, Alfred Edwards, 1896-1976

Type

Book

Material

Published material

Publication info

New York, N.Y American Museum of Natural History [1965]

Notes

Title from caption.

"December 17, 1965."

"The nomenclature of the homologous veins and parts of the wings of the Mastotermitidae is reviewed and compared with that of the orthopteroid orders and with that of other families of the Isoptera. Uralotermes permianus Zalessky and the family Uralotermitidae from the Permian of Russia are removed from the Isoptera and tentatively assigned to the order Protorthoptera. Idomastotermes mysticus Haupt from the Eocene of Germany is removed from the family Mastotermitidae, but is insufficiently well known to be assigned to an order or family of insects. Diatermes sibiricus Martynov from the Oligocene of Siberia is kept in the Isoptera but is removed from the Mastotermitidae and not assigned to any other family. The Isoptera include six families, the Mastotermitidae, Kalotermitidae, Hodotermitidae, Rhinotermitidae, Serritermitidae, and Termitidae. The monotypic subfamily Serritermitinae Holmgren is raised to Serritermitidae, new family, with Serritermes serrifer (Hagen) from Brazil as type genus and species. The family Stylotermitidae Chatterjee and Thakur from India is placed in synonymy with the subfamily Stylotermitinae Holmgren of the family Rhinotermitidae. The family Mastotermitidae Silvestri, consisting of four genera, 13 fossil species, and one living species, is reviewed. The wing venation of each genus is redescribed and compared. Pliotermes PongraМЃcz is placed in synonymy with Mastotermes Froggatt. Spargotermes costalimai, new genus, new species, is described and figured from Miocene-Pliocene deposits, Minas Gerais, Brazil. The wing venation is the most primitive yet discovered in a termite. Blattotermes neoxenus Riek from the Eocene(?) of Queensland, and B. wheeleri (Collins) from the Eocene of Tennessee, are redescribed and compared. The phylogeny of an ecosystem focused around Mastotermes darwiniensis Froggatt, consisting of the host termite, a beetle (Staphylinidae), several species of flagellate protozoans, a spirochaete, and bacteria, is briefly discussed. Mastotermes bournemouthensis Rosen from the Eocene of England, M. anglicus Rosen from the Oligocene of England, with M. batheri Rosen placed in synonymy, M. heerii (Goeppert) from the Oligocene of Gerrnany, M. haidingeri (Heer) from the Miocene of Yugoslavia, with M. vetustus A. PongraМЃcz placed in synonymy, M. croaticus Rosen from the Miocene of Yugoslavia, with Pliotermes hungaricus S. PongraМЃcz placed in synonymy, and M. minor A. PongraМЃcz from the Miocene of Yugoslavia are each discussed and compared with other fossil species and with the single living species, Mastotermes darwiniensis Froggatt, from tropical Australia. The genus Miotermes is questioned as a valid genus but is tentatively placed in the Mastotermitidae. Miotermes procerus (Heer) from the Miocene of Yugoslavia, M. randeckensis Rosen from the Miocene of Germany, M. spectabilis (Heer) from the Miocene of Germany, and M. insignis (Heer) from the Miocene of Germany are compared and discussed. Maps of the world distribution of the fossil and living termites of the family Mastotermitidae are included"--P. 38-39.

Subjects

59.57.32M , Brazil , Classification , Insects, Fossil , Mastotermitidae , Minas Gerais , Neogene , Paleontology , Spargotermes costalimai , Termites, Fossil , Tertiary

Call Number

QL1 .A436 no.2236, 1965

Language

English

Identifiers

OCLC: 31837964