OBSERVATIONS ON" SOME SOUTH AFRICAN TERMITES. 425 



and the largest. In the species specified as Termes badius 

 Hav. the same course has been followed with the soldier caste 

 for similar reasons; but badius does possess well-defined 

 major and minor workers. 



The worker caste of sevei'al species has been described in 

 detail, but these descriptions, as far as they go at present, 

 can be applied for all pi-actical purposes to the largest 

 workers of any species except viator and, perhaps, kar- 

 rooensis. Certain peculiai-ly obese and bright yellow, 

 worker-like insects, taken foraging in company with adult 

 and callow workers of H. karroo ens is s^j. n. and H. 

 warreni 6'j9. ii., have not been described because it has not 

 been possible to decide whether these are aberrant workers 

 or juvenile images. 



Hodotermes transvaalensis sp. n. PL XXXIV, figs. 

 1, la; PI. XXXY, fig. 1. 



SOLUIEE. 



Measurements.^ — Total length 15 to 20 mm.; head with 

 mandibles 6 to 8 mm., head-width 4*5 to 5"5 mm., head-length 

 4' 5 to 5' 2 mm. 



Head. — Vertex pale brown, or reddish- or yellowish- 

 brown ; f rons conspicuously mottled with light whitish yellow ; 

 of this colour three triangular pennant stripes extend back- 

 wards, their narrow wavy apices reaching well over the 

 vertex ; clypeus wholly dark, or dark red-brown or purple, 

 with two faint patches of paler hue. Surface polished ; vertex 

 quite smooth : frons wrinkled ; clypeus strongly chitinised ; 

 the whole with short scattered hairs, those on the frons being 

 the stronger. Dorsal outline broadly U-shaped, not wider 

 behind than in front; Y-suture distinct ; vertex flatly ax'ched ; 



^ The figures given in this and the following descriptions are with a 

 few exceptions based on the measurement of at least ten insects, but 

 in some cases many more were measured. The range is not that of a 

 nest series, but represents the difference between the largest and smallest 

 of the measured insects. 



