Keywords :
Termite nest structure
บทคัดย่อ :
Morphology, nest structure and phylogenetic relationships of the Microcerotermes termites in Thailand were examined. Termites were divided into four groups using the morphological measurements (head and mandible size) of the soldier caste. Of these, three were morphologically distinct and identified as M. annandalei, M. minutus and M. paracelebensis. The remaining morphospecies was morphologically similar to M. crassus but built three different types of nests, namely epigeal conical, epigeal domed and arboreal rounded nests. Phylogenetic analyses of 46 colonies of Microcerotermes using the mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase II (COII) gene suggested that the morphospecies was split into three distinct lineages. One of these, the lineage classified as M. crassus built both epigeal domed and arboreal nests, indicating plasticity of nesting behavior. The remaining two distinct lineages, both of which constructed epigeal conical nests, were considered to be two distinct species.
เอกสารอ้างอิง :
Inoue, T., Hongoh, Y., Klangkaew, C., Vongkaluang, C., Noparatnaporn, N., & Kudo, T. (2005) Plasticity and specificity of termite nest structure. Sociobiology Vol. 45, No. 3, 2005
