THE SOLDIERLESS TERMITES OF AFRICA 139 



i7°57'S., 3i°i6'E., 12.xii.1969 (B. L. Mitchell). Zambia: Lusaka, 9.xii.i966 and 

 Chipongwe, 16. xi. 1969 (M. G. Bingham). 



Material in BMNH except where stated otherwise. 



The only biological information on this species is that it is found as a 'lodger' in 

 mounds of Odontotomies and Macrotermes. 



ACHOLOTERMES gen. n. 



(Acholos, Gr., 'meek') 



Type-species: Acholotermes tithasus sp. n. 



Imago. Medium sized, W, 0-84-1-06. Fore tibia with three apical spurs, third small to 

 well developed. Apical teeth of mandibles long, La/Li, 0-68-1-04, Ka/Ri. 0-92-1-45; subsidiary 

 marginal tooth of left mandible with proximal end level with edge of molar prominence or just 

 clear of it in surface view, complex ratio, h\/L\.h m , 11-59-16-29. Point of first marginal tooth 

 of right mandible slightly to distinctly behind line of apical to second marginal, anterior edge 

 of first marginal equal to or a little longer than that of second. Meso- and metanota rather 

 narrow to somewhat wider at constriction, M/W, 0-25-0-32, transverse dark sutures weak or 

 absent in type-species, present in others; complex ratio of mandible and notal measurements, 

 Li/M.N, 1-26-2-58. 



Worker. Medium sized, W, 0-70-0-80. Fore tibia scarcely to moderately swollen, Ti/Tw, 

 3-91-5-30, with three apical spurs, third usually well developed, small to vestigial in one species. 

 Apical teeth of mandibles long to very long. La/Li, 0-81-1-07, Ra/Ri, 0-97-1-29, subsidiary 

 marginal tooth of left mandible just clear of molar prominence in surface view or separated by 

 distinct notch, complex ratio, La/Li. L m , 20-75-22-89; point of first marginal tooth of right 

 mandible distinctly behind line of apical to second marginal, anterior edge of first marginal 

 shorter than that of second or equal to it, complex ratio, Ra/Ri-Rhh 22-80-30-15. Mesenteric 

 junction with proctodeum practically transverse and to right of malpighian knot in three or 

 four species, overlapping by twice width of mesenteron and touching malpighian knot in the 

 fourth. Enteric valve seating distinctly but not prominently three-lobed, connected to second 

 pouch of proctodeum by long neck, lateral to dorso-lateral in position in unopened abdomen; 

 internal cushions of enteric valve with scaly surface, posterior margin of each scale with one or 

 more minute spines or spicules. 



Three of the four species of Acholotermes form a compact, well defined group with 

 many features in common. The fourth, A. epius, with a longer mixed segment and 

 reduced third apical spur of the fore tibia shows resemblances to Anenteotermes 

 and Astalotermes species. These are reflected in both the single linkage cluster 

 analysis and the principal co-ordinate plots (Text-fig. 339). Median sorting leaves 

 all four species together, with A. epius joining the group at a phenon level 10% 

 lower than the linkage between the other species, at the same level of affinity as 

 that of certain members of other genera. 



The long apical mandibular teeth of both imago and worker castes serve to 

 distinguish Acholotermes from most other genera. Those Astalotermes that overlap 

 in this respect are smaller, with narrower meso- and metanota and in the worker 

 have unarmed enteric valves. Anenteotermes has one species with similarly long 

 apical teeth, but this too is smaller and has many other differences. Two species 

 of Astratotermes that partially overlap in the mandible characters can in fact be 



