ETHIOPIAN NASUTITERMITINAE 



Posterior margin of head behind eyes distinctly less than semi-circular ; fontanelle variable, 

 in o\ from a short whitish streak, slightly bifurcate at anterior end, to an indistinct mark only 

 slightly paler than rest of head capsule, and in 2, from a whitish slit to an indistinct pale patch, 

 in both sexes flat to very slightly depressed posteriorly ; eyes prominent in proportion to own 

 diameter, though not large relative to head width, W/E index 2-8-3-5 (only one specimen 

 recorded under 30), nearly circular to angularly oval ; ocelli small to medium sized, separated 

 from eyes by one-third to slightly more than own least diameter, oval ; postclypeus moderately 

 inflated, width 2-5 to 30 times length, anterior margin nearly straight to distinctly sinuate, 

 posterior margin convex, rounded, slightly sinuate towards outer corners ; antennae 15 seg- 

 mented, II slightly longer than IV, III and V subequal, slightly shorter than IV, III slightly 

 narrower than V 



Cerci of 2 distinctly shorter than width across base, with somewhat mamilliform tip. 

 Measurements (25 specimens from 7 localities) in millimetres. 



Range Mean 



116-1-50 . . 132 



0-35-0-48 . . 0-41 



009-014 x 0-13-0-20 . . Oil x 016 



0-04.0-IO . . 008 



093-1 18 . . I 04 



0-58-0-78 . . o-66 



1-38-1-80 . . 157 



040-1470 . . 1140 



Soldiers. Head capsule orange to ferruginous-orange, nose ferruginous to chestnut-brown. 

 Pronotum and antennae as head capsule. Abdominal tergites and femora of legs yellow, 

 abdominal sternites, tibiae and tarsi pale yellow. 



Head capsule in plan view nearly circular, slightly tapering towards front, nose conical. In 

 profile very nearly straight, sometimes very slightly concave or sinuate, nose equal in length or 

 slightly longer than rest of head capsule, measuring from hind margin of antennal socket, angle 

 of nose cone 15-25 degrees ; postmentum slightly and evenly convex ; antennae 12-13 se 8~ 

 mented, usually 13, proportions of segments somewhat variable depending on size, II and IV 

 usually subequal, shorter than V, which may be shorter than or equal to III. Setae on head, 

 excluding appendages, confined to four at tip of nose, with sometimes a very few small fine 

 setae immediately behind them, and a few on anterior margin of postmentum. 



Abdominal tergites with scattered minute fine setae, and longer setae on posterior margins of 

 last 3-4 segments ; sternites with shorter scattered setae, and long setae on posterior margins. 



Measurements (157 specimens from 32 localities) in millimetres. 



Range Mean 



i-33-i- 8 9 • • • • 158 



Head width across eyes 

 Greatest diameter of eye 

 Ocellus 

 Ocellus to eye 

 Width of pronotum 

 Length of pronotum 

 Length of hind tibia 

 Length of fore wing 



Head length to tip of nose 

 Head width 



Depth of head capsule . 

 Width of pronotum 

 Length of pronotum 

 Length of hind tibia 



o-93 

 062 

 048 



0-20 

 113 



ghtly larger and to have 



0-75-1-13 

 0-50-0-75 

 0-40-0-55 

 0-18-0-25 

 0-93-1-39 



Variation. Imagos from the eastern end of the range tend to be sli 

 the postclypeus less clouded with dark brown than those from the west coast of Africa, but the 

 soldiers remain closely similar throughout the range. Soldier variation consists mainly of 

 differences in the thickness of the nose cone, and of minor alterations in the angle of the nose and 

 the degree of straightness of the profile. 



The material from which Smeathman (1781) described this species has never 

 been traced, and was probably never sent to any museum. Griffin (1942) records 

 that the specimens of nests sent to Drury by Smeathman arrived in fragments, and 



