Nasutitermes aurantius (Isoptera, Termitidae, Nasutitermitinae), a new nasutiform termite species from Panama and a key to soldiers of Central American Nasutitermes Dudley, 1890
<i>Nasutitermes aurantius</i> <b>sp. nov.</b>, is described from Central Panama. The soldier is unique among Central American <i>Nasutitermes</i> by its small size and orange head capsule coloration. The enteric valve armature is also unique among congeners. The new species constitutes the seventh <i>Nasutitermes</i> species in the region for which the soldier is described. We provide a key to all Central American <i>Nasutitermes</i> soldiers. Our phylogenetic reconstructions indicate that <i>N. aurantius</i> <b>sp. nov.</b> is more closely related to the Afrotropical <i>Nasutitermes lujae</i> than to any other Neotropical <i>Nasutitermes</i>.
Authors
- Yves Roisin (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6635-3552)
- Simon Hellemans (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1266-9134)
- Rudolf H. Scheffrahn (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6191-5963)
- Eliana M. Cancello (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3125-6335)
- Menglin Wang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2206-9503)
- Mauricio M. Rocha (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6568-068X)
- Thomas Bourguignon (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4035-8977)
Institutions
- Université Libre de Bruxelles (BE)
- Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University (JP)
- Universidade de São Paulo (BR)
- University of Florida (US)
- Institute of Entomology (CZ)
- São Paulo Museum of Art (BR)
Publication Details
- Journal
- ZooKeys
- Published
- 2025-10-17
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1256.158192
- Primary Topic
- Insect and Arachnid Ecology and Behavior
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00
Funders
- South Carolina Department of Agriculture
- Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico
- Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University