Heterotermitidae | |
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Reticulitermes lucifugus imago | |
Scientific classification ![]() | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Class: | Insecta |
Order: | Blattodea |
Infraorder: | Isoptera |
Nanorder: | Geoisoptera |
Family: | Heterotermitidae Hellemans et al., 2024 |
Type genus | |
Heterotermes Froggatt, 1897 |
Heterotermitidae, or the Subterranean termites , is a family of termites that was elevated to family level from the subfamily Heterotermitinae , formerly nested in Rhinotermitidae . [1] [2] Recent cladistic analyses as of 2024 position Heterotermitidae as sister to the Termitidae , forming the clade Geoisoptera . [1] This family includes the most economically significant termites, Reticulitermes, Heterotermes, and especially Coptotermes with C. formosanus in particular costing an estimated >$2.2 billion in annual damages within the United States alone. [3] They primarily feed through the soil-wood interface, foraging for food through the soil and mud tubes. [4] The nests of most species are typically diffuse subterranean galleries and tunnels, however Coptotermes is known to build more complex centralized nests built from carton, with some species building mounds. [5] [6]
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