Nanotermes Engel & Grimaldi

Engel, Michael S., Grimaldi, David A., Nascimbene, Paul C. & Singh, Hukam, 2011, The termites of Early Eocene Cambay amber, with the earliest record of the Termitidae (Isoptera), ZooKeys 148, pp. 105-123 : 114-115

Nanotermes Engel & Grimaldi gen. n.

Type species.

Nanotermes isaacae Engel & Grimaldi, sp. n.

Diagnosis.

Imago: Minute termites (ca. 2.0 mm in length excluding wings, forewing ca. 2.6 mm), with head longer than wide and sparsely setose. Labrum possibly without dark, sclerotized transverse band, relatively long; postclypeus prominent and large; fontanelle apparently obscure or obscured (owing to folding of the cuticle); antenna moniliform, with 12 articles, increasing in size apicad (apical flagellomere 2x width of basal flagellomere). Forewing scale small, not overlapping hind wing scale, with basal suture relatively straight, humeral margin straight, all veins originating within scale, CuP relatively straight and terminating before basal suture; wing membrane microtrichose, not reticulate, not infuscate; Sc and R pigmented, remainder of veins faint; M and CuA become nebulous to spectral by about one-third wing length (CuA can be discerned by tilting specimen; apical two-thirds of M cannot be detected). Tibial spur formula 2-2-2; tibiae without outer spines; tarsi trimerous (similar in this respect to Indotermes Roonwal and Sen-Sarma of the Apicotermitinae : Speculitermes Group); pretarsal claws simple, arolium absent. Pronotum wider than long, slightly narrower than head; anterior margin straight, with very faint medial notch, apicolateral corners acutely rounded; lateral borders parallel-sided, with broadly-rounded posterior corners; posterior border relatively straight; setae nearly absent except a few along margins.

Etymology.

The new genus-group name is a combination of nanos (Gr., meaning, “small”), as this is probably the smallest known alate termite, and Termes, type genus of the Termitidae . The name is masculine.