42 



f^^^ttrJe Fuller 



Macrohodotermes mossambicus (Hagen) sens. sir. (1853, 1862) 

 = Hodotermes mossambicus Hagen (1853, 1862). 

 == Hodotermes mossambicus Hagen (1858 in part, nee. 

 soldier) . 



In the strict sense mossambicus is a species only known, even 

 today, by the imagos and workers. No soldiers have ever been 

 obtained from the type locality. 



There are no less than five records of the occurrence of the 

 species in South Africa, but no one of these can be regarded as 

 technically valid. 



Hagen ( 1 858) gave the first record and this calls for some 

 explanation. In 1853 he published a preliminary note on the 

 Termites of Mossambique in which he named certain imagos 

 Hodotermes mossambicus. The amplification of this note had a 

 delayed publication and appeared in Peter's *' Reise nach 

 Mossambique *' published in 1862. The amplification refers only 

 to imagos and workers. 



In the interim, Hagen (1858) published his Monograph and into 

 the description of H. mossambicus^ therein given, he inserted a 

 description of the soldier caste. This description was based upon a 

 single, dry and imperfect specimen collected by Dorhn at Pniel 

 Mission Station in Griqualand West. The type locality of this 

 soldier is, therefore, the valley of the Orange River between Kim- 

 berley and Barkly West. 



