THE SOLDIERLESS TERMITES OF AFRICA 187 



Right mandible, first to second marginal 

 (Ri) on 



Right mandible, second marginal to molar 



(Rm) 005 



Since there is only one species in the genus, all the necessary comparisons are made 

 under the generic heading. It only remains to mention that the abdomen appears 

 to be dehiscent in A. echinocolon. 



Holotype $ imago, paratype <$ and $ imagos and workers from type-colony, 

 Nigeria: 30 miles from Lokoja on Okene Road (W. A. Sands, coll. No. 8.2093), in 

 British Museum (Natural History). 



The single nest-series was found in an amorphous low earth mound. 



ASAGAROTERMES gen. n. 



(A — 'without', sagaris, Gr., 'A kind of sword') 

 Type-species: Asagarotermes coronatus sp. n. 



Imago. Medium-sized, W, 103-1-10. Fore tibia with three apical spurs, third almost 

 equal to other two. Apical teeth of mandibles rather long, La/Li, 0-78-0-80, Ra/Ri, 1-09-1-18; 

 subsidiary marginal tooth of left mandible with proximal end just clear of molar prominence 

 in surface view, complex ratio, L A /Li.L m , 11-80-12-79; points of apical and marginal teeth of 

 right mandible approximately in line, anterior edge of first marginal slightly longer than that 

 of second, nearly equal. Meso- and metanota narrow at constriction, M/VV, 0-20-0-33, trans- 

 verse dark sutures strongly developed; complex ratio of mandible and notal measurements, 

 Li/M.N, 2-50-4-16. 



Worker. Large-sized, W, 0-85-0-88. Fore tibia weakly swollen, Ti/T w , 4-40-4-49, with 

 three apical spurs, third about half length of other two. Apical teeth of mandibles very long, 

 La/Li, 0-96-0-99, R A /Ri, 1-11-1-16; subsidiary marginal tooth of left mandible with proximal 

 end just clear of molar prominence in surface view, complex ratio, La/Li. L m , 16-33-22-00; 

 point of first marginal tooth of right mandible distinctly behind line of apical to second marginal, 

 anterior edges of marginal teeth equal in length, complex ratio, Ra/Ri Rm, 20-60-22-65. 

 Mesenteric junction with proctodeum overlapping by about one and a half times width of 

 mesenteron at insertion of malpighian tubules, anterior end of proctodeum within malpighian 

 knot. Enteric valve seating almost without lobes, practically a rim, sessile on second pouch 

 of proctodeum, lateral in unopened abdomen ; internal cushions of enteric valve weakly developed 

 unsclerotized, and unarmed except for a single narrow but strongly sclerotized spiked coronet- 

 like band girdling the middle of each cushion. 



This strange type of armature has not been found in any other species, nor has 

 any precursor or even distant relative appeared among the other genera. The 

 spikes on the 'coronet' are more numerous at its outer ends, and appear to engage 

 with those of neighbouring cushions. It is clear from PI. 7 that this cannot be any 

 kind of filtering device and the only function that suggests itself is a stiffening one, 

 keeping open the lumen of the valve whilst allowing for expansion if needed. 



Asagarotermes seems to be equally isolated in the analyses of the similarity matrix 

 to Apagotermes and Amalotermes, being the penultimate species sorted by single 

 linkage and in the last four by median sorting. The same comments apply to its 

 position on the vector diagrams — it tends to fall in the 'gaps' rather than to be a 

 complete outlier. 



