Judul: Morphology and Chemical Components of the Excrements of Drywood Termites Cryptotermes spp. (Isoptera: Kalotermitidae)
Abstrak: Suatu penelitian telah dilakukan untuk menganalisis morfologi dan komponen kimiawi ekskremen rayap kayu kering Cryptotermes spp. dan potensinya sebagai penanda spesies rayap tersebut. Contoh ekskremen dikumpulkan dari koloni rayap yang menyerang kayu di tiga lokasi berbeda, yaitu: (1) Karang Tanjung, Pandeglang (KT); (2) Dramaga, Bogor (DM); dan (3) Cibinong, Bogor (CB). Kayu terserang dan morfologi kepala kasta prajurit rayap diamati untuk diidentifikasi spesiesnya. Sementara itu luas area, keliling, serta diameter maksimum dan minimum ekskremen diukur di bawah mikroskop digital. Komponen kimia ekskremen dianalisis menggunakan pengujian Py-GCMS. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa spesies rayap yang terdapat pada contoh kayu KT1 dan DM adalah Cryptotermes cynocephalus, sedangkan pada contoh kayu KT2, CB1, CB2 dan CB3 adalah Cryptotermes dudleyi. Rata-rata luas area ekskremen pada contoh kayu KT1 dan DM masing-masing 188633.22 µm2 dan 181359.45 µm2. Sementara itu, rata-rata luas area ekskremen pada contoh kayu KT2, CB1, CB2 dan CB3 secara berurutan adalah 292079.1 µm2, 306294.95 µm2, 282434.7 µm2 dan 332849.27 µm2. Rata-rata keliling ekskremen pada contoh kayu KT1 dan DM masing-masing 1679.407 µm dan 1665.913 µm. Ekskremen KT2, CB1, CB2 dan CB3 masing-masing memiliki keliling 2101.653 µm, 2139.88 µm, 2126.813 µm dan 2277.313 µm. Kisaran luas area dan keliling ekskremen dari masing-masing spesies rayap kayu kering yang teridentifikasi terlalu besar atau terlalu bervariasi (tidak mengelompok) sehingga tidak dapat dijadikan sebagai penanda spesies. Tidak ditemukan komponen kimia tertentu yang dapat dijadikan sebagai penanda spesies C. cynocephalus dan C. dudleyi., A study was conducted to analyze the morphology and chemical components of drywood termite Cryptotermes spp. excrements and their potential use as species marker for this particular termite. The excrements were collected from the drywood termite colonies that attacked woods in three different locations, namely: (1) Karang Tanjung, Pandeglang (KT); (2) Dramaga, Bogor (DM); and (3) Cibinong, Bogor (CB). The infested woods and the collected drywood termites were subjected to species identification. Meanwhile, the area, perimeter, and maximum and minimum diameters of the excrements were measured under a digital microscope. The chemical components of the excrements were analyzed using Py-GCMS. The results showed that the drywood termite found in KT1 and DM wood samples was Cryptotermes cynocephalus, while that in KT2, CB1, CB2, and CB3 wood samples was C. dudleyi. The average area of the excrements collected from KT1 and DM wood samples were 188633.22 µm2 and 181359.45 µm2, respectively. Meanwhile, the average area of those collected from KT2, CB1, CB2, and CB3 wood samples were 292079.1 µm2, 306294.95 µm2, 282434.7 µm2, and 332849.27 µm2, respectively. The average perimeter of the droppings collected from KT1 and DM wood samples were 1679,407 µm and 1665,913 µm, respectively, while those collected from KT2, CB1, CB2, and CB3 specimens have the average perimeter of 2101,653 µm, 2139.88 µm, 2126,813 µm, and 2277,313 µm, respectively. It was found that the range value of area and perimeter of the drywood termite’s excrements were too broad, therefore these parameters could not be concluded as species marker. And yet, the chemical components of the excrements was not suitable to be species marker to distinguish C. cynocephalus and C. dudleyi.
Keyword: chemical components, Cryptotermes cynocephalus, Cryptotermes dudleyi, morphology, the excrements of drywood termites