ItalianTermiteMan
Arachnosquire
- Joined
- Jul 23, 2023
- Messages
- 146
Here we have a group of Drepanotermes perniger workers retreating back to an exit hole (presumably after their open-foraging activity was disturbed) while many alerted soldiers, armed with huge sickle-shaped piercing mandibles and frontal gland-produced defensive fluid, stand guard. Look how cool they are lining their hole on the left!
Drepanotermes is a genus of tiny but very interesting harvester termites found exclusively in Australia which are well adapted to dry conditions and feed on grasses, twigs and other dead plant detritus. They are very closely related with the much more widespread Amitermes and their name name aptly derive from the greek word "drepanon", sickle, in relation to shape the soldiers' mandibles. Some species build large epigeal mounds, while other nest underground.
Pic by Jean Hort (Attribution CC licence); Yalgoo, Australia.
Drepanotermes is a genus of tiny but very interesting harvester termites found exclusively in Australia which are well adapted to dry conditions and feed on grasses, twigs and other dead plant detritus. They are very closely related with the much more widespread Amitermes and their name name aptly derive from the greek word "drepanon", sickle, in relation to shape the soldiers' mandibles. Some species build large epigeal mounds, while other nest underground.
Pic by Jean Hort (Attribution CC licence); Yalgoo, Australia.
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