''Schedorhinotermes intermedius'' is a species of
termite
Termites are small insects that live in colonies and have distinct castes (eusocial) and feed on wood or other dead plant matter. Termites comprise the infraorder Isoptera, or alternatively the epifamily Termitoidae, within the order Blattode ...
in the family
Rhinotermitidae
Rhinotermitidae is a family of termites (Isoptera). They feed on wood and can cause extensive damage to buildings or other wooden structures. About 345 species are recognized, among these are severe pests such as '' Coptotermes formosanus'', ''Co ...
,
endemic
Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...
to eastern Australia.
Description
Members of the
worker caste
Eusociality (from Greek εὖ ''eu'' "good" and social), the highest level of organization of sociality, is defined by the following characteristics: cooperative brood care (including care of offspring from other individuals), overlapping genera ...
possess internally serrated
mandibles
In anatomy, the mandible, lower jaw or jawbone is the largest, strongest and lowest bone in the human facial skeleton. It forms the lower jaw and holds the lower tooth, teeth in place. The mandible sits beneath the maxilla. It is the only movabl ...
, a centrally grooved
labrum, a
fontanelle
A fontanelle (or fontanel) (colloquially, soft spot) is an anatomical feature of the infant human skull comprising soft membranous gaps ( sutures) between the cranial bones that make up the calvaria of a fetus or an infant. Fontanelles allow f ...
, and a flat
pronotum
The prothorax is the foremost of the three segments in the thorax of an insect, and bears the first pair of legs. Its principal sclerites (exoskeletal plates) are the pronotum (dorsal), the prosternum (ventral), and the propleuron (lateral) on ea ...
with no anterior lobes. The
soldier caste is dimorphic, with major and minor soldiers. The major soldier is 5.0–7.5 mm long, whereas the minor soldier is 3.0–5.0 mm long, with a narrower head, more slender mandibles, and longer labrum that extends to the tip of the mandibles.
Distribution and habitat
This species is distributed from south-eastern
Queensland
)
, nickname = Sunshine State
, image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, established_ ...
to just south of
Sydney
Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...
, mainly in coastal regions. In nature they build their nests in tree stumps, but they have become a serious pest of timber.
See also
* ''
Dagazvirus schedorhinotermitis''
References
Further reading
*
External links
PaDIL: Subterranean termite (''Schedorhinotermes intermedius'')– images
{{Taxonbar, from=Q108070103
Insects described in 1865
Insects of Australia
Rhinotermitidae