Schedorhinotermes Silvestri, 1909

Bourguignon, Thomas & Roisin, Yves, 2011, Revision of the termite family Rhinotermitidae (Isoptera) in New Guinea, ZooKeys 148, pp. 55-103 : 70

Genus Schedorhinotermes Silvestri, 1909

Rhinotermes ( Schedorhinotermes ) Silvestri 1909: 289.

Schedorhinotermes Silvestri. Snyder, 1949: 89.

Type species.

Rhinotermes intermedius Brauer, 1865, by original designation.

Diagnosis.

Imagoes very similar to those of Parrhinotermes . Head approximately circular in shape. Fontanelle situated in the middle of the head. Frons with a slightly visible groove. Labrum short, inclined downward, without groove. Soldiers generally dimorphic and sometimes trimorphic. All species described here have dimorphic soldiers, excepted Schedorhinotermes seclusus in which the minor soldiers can sometimes be further separated into two morphs ( Miller 1987). Minor soldiers with elongated head. Frons and clypeus with a groove in the middle that joins the opening of the fontanelle to the labrum. Labrum elongated, crossed by a groove in the middle, ending in a brush. Mandibles long and slender. Left mandible with two short subsidiary teeth. Right mandible with one short subsidiary tooth. Major soldiers with labrum proportionally shorter than in minor soldiers. Frons and clypeus with a groove in the middle, from the fontanelle to the labrum. Labrum short and large, with a groove in the middle and an apical brush. Mandibles stout and strongly curved. Left mandible with two large subsidiary teeth. Right mandible with one large subsidiary tooth, as well as a hump at the base. Major soldiers supply more relevant systematic information to distinguish species.

Distribution.

This genus is known from Africa, Southeast Asia, the Papuan region and Australia ( Emerson 1955, Harris 1968). It feeds on dead wood.