Nasutitermitinae | |
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Hospitalitermes sp | |
Scientific classification ![]() | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Class: | Insecta |
Order: | Blattodea |
Infraorder: | Isoptera |
Family: | Termitidae |
Subfamily: | Nasutitermitinae Hare [1] |
Genera | |
see text |
The Nasutitermitinae is a cosmopolitan subfamily of higher termites that includes more than 80 genera. [2] The highly derived soldier caste exhibits vestigial mandibles and a protruding fontanellar process on the head, known as the nasus, from which they can "shoot" chemical weaponry. Notable genera include the notorious wood-eating Nasutitermes, and the conspicuous Hospitalitermes and Constrictotermes, both distinguished for their brazen habit of forming extensive foraging trails exposed to the open.
The Termite Catalogue [3] lists the following: