TERMITES IN THE UNITED STATES. 7 



Another type of substitute or neoteinic reproductive form, which 

 greatly resembles the worker ( tw ergatoid "), is developed from young 

 larvae of the sexed forms. Of a pale yellowish or grayish color and 

 having no wing pads (fig. 3; fig. 4, c), individuals of this larval sup- 

 plementary reproductive form are apparently blind and never leave 

 the parent colony, unless by underground tunnels. 



In neither of the types of supplementary reproductive forms do the 

 queens become as large as the normal queens, but there are usually 

 many present in the same colony, as well as several males, or kings. 

 The largest queen found in the United States of L. fl'avipes Kol. is 

 only 14 .1 mm. in length and 4 mm. in width (measured while liv- 



Fig. 4. — Leucotermes flavipes: Details of head and thorax of the three forms of repro- 

 ductive females, a, True queen, or adult form, 14.5 mm. in length, wing stubs present ; 

 6, supplementary or " neoteinic " queen, or nymphal form, 9 mm. in length, wing pads 

 present ; o, worker-like or " ergatoid " queen, or larval form, 9 mm. in length, without 

 wing pads. (Original.) 



ing) — a queen of the normal type with wing stubs. Nymphal neo- 

 teinic queens 12 mm. in length (alcoholic specimens) and larval neo- 

 teinic queens 7 mm. in length (measured while living) are the largest 

 that have been found of this species. The abdomens of nymphal 

 queens are often distorted by the development of the ovaries and 

 present an irregular, lopsided outline. These neoteinic forms of 

 both sexes are probably developed to take the place of the normal 

 forms in case of loss or possibly in the establishment of branch colo- 

 nies; i. e., they may be impelled to migrate from overstocked colonies 

 by means of underground passages. Queens of all these different 

 types of reproductive forms are active even after the abdomen has 

 become greatly distended. 



