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babile che « accompanied by workers and soldiers, they leave the parent colony by 
means of subterranean passages and establish a new colony. Since the origin of the castes 
is due to intrinsie causes, a certain proportionate number of these nymphs of the second 
formmay be produced each year in long established colonies with parent first form 
adults. They would evidently be superflous if the original reproductive forms of the 
parent colony were present, and might therefore be forced to migrate » (pag. 127). 
In certe colonie di Reticulitermes, invece che individui 7 e $ di seconda forma, 
trovansi riproduttori tutti di terza forma e « sometimes a male of the first form with 
numerous mature females of the second form. Grassi would have described these second 
form females as « substitute » queens, produced by the workers to fill the place of a 
missing « true » queen. It is an open question how they are to be accounted for with 
our present know ledge and we have no exacta data to the progeny » 
In un caso si son trovate insieme in una piccola colonia tre regine di terza forma e una 
di seconda forma, ma ambedue i sessi di due differenti caste riproduttive mature non 
sono state mai trovate in una stessa colonia di etieulitermes. 
Gli autori concludono esprimendo il proposito di completare con osservazioni in na- 
tura ed esperienze d’allevamento, « wich will require several years to complete », 
lo studio del'e tre caste riproduttive. 
« The field of termite morphology needs much revision, but a few significant facts 
may be stated here : ° 
The Castes of Retieulitermes flavipes kot. 
1. Adults of the first form Long wings, or stubs after dezilation; brain, 
compound eyes, and frontal glande large; 
mature sex organs largest of any caste; 
abundant pigment in skin. Aérial habit 
of swarming. 
2. Adultsofthe second form Short wing pads: brain, compound eyes and 
REPRODUCTIVE CASTES frontal gland smaller; mature sex organs 
slightly smaller; less pigment. Subterra- 
nean mode of life. 
3. Adults of the third form Entirely wingless; brain small, compound 
eyes and frontal gland vestigial; mature 
sex organs much smaller; still less pigment. 
Subterranean mode of life. 
4. Workers... . + Wingless; brain small, compound eyes and 
frontal gland vestigial; sex organs em- 
bryonic; no pigmentin body. Subterranean 
mode of life. Head broader than in the 
first and second reproductive forms, stouter 
mandibular muscles. 
STERILE CASTES } i } 
5. Soldiers. . . . . . Wingless; brain very small, compound eyes 
vestigial, frontal gland large; sex or- 
gans embryonie, even smaller than in the 
worker; no pigment in body. Subterranean 
mode of life. Elongate head, long mandi- 
bles, massive mandibular muscles: 
CLASSE DI SCIENZE Fisicne — Memorie — Vol. XIV, Ser. 53. 42 
