Tucupitermes Almeida-Azevedo, Acioli & Azevedo 2025, gen. nov.
Creators: name: Almeida-Azevedo, Rayssa
name: Acioli, Agno Nonato Serrão
name: Heleodoro, Raphael
name: Morais, José Wellington De
name: Brown, George Gardner
name: Kille, Peter
name: Cunha, Luis
name: Azevedo, Renato Almeida De
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2025
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Blattodea
Termitidae
Tucupitermes

description: Tucupitermes Almeida-Azevedo, Acioli & Azevedo gen. nov.
urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act: C241F985-DA5D-4CEE-95AD-2AA0A38FAD47
(Figs 1A–E, 2A–K)
Type species: Tucupitermes ubixaba Almeida-Azevedo, Acioli & Azevedo sp. nov. (Figs 1A–E, 2A–K)
Etymology: From the Tupi-Guarani “ Tiku’pir ”, which means “yellow juice extracted from the root of the wild cassava when peeled, grated and squeezed”, in reference to the color of the worker.
Description
Imago. Unknown.
Genus Diagnosis. Left mandible with a cutting-edge length twice as long as the distance between the apical tooth and M1+2 (Fig. 1E). Stomodeal valve long, twice as long as the length of the crop. Malpighian ampullae developed and visible in right lateral and ventral views (Fig. 2B, C, F). Mesenteric tongue is long and slightly globular, reaching midline of abdomen (Fig. 2F). Connection between P1 and P3 not visible in any view in situ, with small bilobed seating (Fig. 2H, I).
Genus Description
Worker. (Fig. 1A–F). Head capsule dark yellow with darker longitudinal muscles converging towards vertex (Fig. 1A). Worker with a whitish, convex fontanelle, resembling a drop (Fig. 1C, D). Head capsule with few bristles of varying sizes distributed throughout the head, except in the posterior region. Postclypeus small, slightly inflated and with few bristles of the same size as bristles of head capsule (Fig. 1D). Labrum convex, longer than the postclypeus+clypeus, with bristles thicker than the bristles of head capsule (Fig. 1C, D). Antenna with 13 antennomeres, with antennomere I <II, III <than remaining. Mandibles robust; Left mandible with apical tooth shorter than M1+2 (Fig. 1E); distance between apical tooth and M1+2 is proportionally closer compared to other structures of mandible; cutting-edge length twice as long as the distance between the apical tooth and M1+2 (Fig. 1E); incision between M1+2 and M3 clear and very distant from M1+2; tooth M3 acute, with short distance between M3 and molar prominence; molar prominence conical, with groove-like texture and scales at its base (Fig. 1E). Right mandible with apical tooth slightly smaller than M1; right mandible with the first marginal tooth significantly enlarged compared to the other teeth (Fig. 1E); posterior margin of tooth M1 wider than the molar prominence (Fig. 1E); margin between teeth M1 and M2 forming angle of 130º (Fig. 1E); M2 conical; molar plate concave, without grooves, groove-like texture and scales at its base. Yellowish thorax, pronotum wider than half width of head, with many bristles on edges (Fig. 1A, B); meso- and metanotonum with several bristles on lateral and posterior margins (Fig. 1A, B). Tibiae lighter than femora (Fig. 1A); tibiae and femora with many irregular spines on anterior surface (Fig. 1B); procoxae with a distinct longitudinal row of spine-like bristles on anterior surface (Fig. 1B, F). Abdomen translucent, tergites and sternites covered with many bristles of different sizes (Fig. 1B). Measurement (mm) of 20 workers in table 1.
Digestive tube. (Fig. 2A–K). Crop small and located immediately after thorax, directed towards right side of body in dorsal view, narrowing toward gizzard (Fig. 2A). Gizzard vestigial, visible in dorsal and left lateral views, without armour, and with six first-order pulvilli; surface of pulvilli scaly with alternating scales, with posterior part with tiny spines; space between puvilli is smooth; stomodeal valve very long, twice as long as length of crop, and visible through mesenteron (Fig. 2A, E); mesenteron uniform, with diameter larger than P1; mesenteron with four well-developed, elongated Malpighian ampullae, with at least two ampullae visible in right lateral and ventral views (Fig. 2B, C, F); four independent Malpighian tubules, one in each ampulla (Fig. 2F). Mesenteric tongue long and slightly globular, almost reaching midline of body (Fig. 2C, F). P1 long, starting on the right side of body in ventral view and connecting to P3 on right side, covered by P 4 in dorsal view (Fig. 2A–C). Small bilobed seating (Fig. 2H, I); P2 not visible externally; asymmetric enteric valve, with three lobes with small, poorly defined scales, each scale with minute spine at apex; three lobes with large, defined scales converging toward median region of the lobe and forming concavity with cluster of minute spines; region between lobes without scales (Fig. 2J, K); P3 globular, connecting to P4 by isthmus, visible dorsal view (Fig. 2A). Isthmus arched, positioned near left anterolateral margin, visible in dorsal view (Fig. 2A). In dorsal view, P3 wide, with striated appearance just above P4. P4 width twice as small as width of mesenteron in dorsal view (Fig. 2A). Connection P4 and P5 forming loop facing left side of body, visible in dorsal and left lateral views (Fig. 2A, D).
Comparisons
The new genus exhibits external characteristics that are very similar to some species of Aparatermes Fontes, 1986, such as the coloration of the head capsule and spines present on the legs (Pinzón Florian et al. 2019) (Fig. 1A, B). However, the size of the individuals of the new genus exceeds the size of the Aparatermes spp. (Table 1), and the left mandible of Tucupitermes gen. nov. has a cutting blade length twice as long as the distance between the apical tooth and M1+2, differing from some Aparatermes (A. abbreviatus, A. silvestrii, A. thornatus – personal observations) (Fig. 1E and Table 1). In Aparatermes the mesenteric tongue is short and non-globular, whereas in Tucupitermes gen. nov. is long, widened and slightly globular (Fig. 2 C, F). This characteristic is uncommon for medium/largesized Apicotermitinae, being described for Patawatermes Bourguignon & Roisin 2016, and for small-sized termites, such as Anoplotermes Müller 1873, Chasitermes Scheffrahn & Carrijo 2023, Disjunctitermes Scheffrahn 2017 and Humutermes Bourguignon & Roisin 2016. Furthermore, the P1–P3 connection in Tucupitermes gen. nov. is only visible with dissection (Fig. 2G, H), while in Aparatermes it can be observed in dorsal view in situ. The P1–P3 connection visible only with dissection is uncommon in the Neotropical Apicotermitinae, only known for Anoplotermes parvus (Bourguignon et al. 2010). The shape and size of the enteric valve seating, which is bilobed, with very small lobes is also unique in the new genus (Fig. 2I). The absence of scales around the lobes of the enteric valve of Tucupitermes gen. nov. (Fig. 2J, K) is shared with Aparatermes, but also Ruptitermes and Mangolditermes (Acioli & Constantino 2015; Carrijo et al. 2023), so this structure is not determinant to distinguish these genera.
The length of the stomodeal valve in Tucupitermes gen. nov. is extremely long, and was not previously observed in any other Apicotermitinae. This is also true for the Malpighian ampullae, that have not been reported in any genus of soldierless termites, but it may have gone unnoticed in some species of Aparatermes Fontes, 1986 and Ruptitermes Mathews, 1977 (Personal observations of Aparatermes thornatus, Aparatermes silvestrii and Ruptitermes spp.). However, these two genera have features distinct from Tucupitermes gen. nov., such as the short mesenteric tongue, the trilobed enteric valve seating, and an enteric valve with well-developed spines (Fontes, 1986; Pinzón Florian et al. 2019) Acioli and Constantino, 2015).
description: Published as part of Almeida-Azevedo, Rayssa, Acioli, Agno Nonato Serrão, Heleodoro, Raphael, Morais, José Wellington De, Brown, George Gardner, Kille, Peter, Cunha, Luis & Azevedo, Renato Almeida De, 2025, Tucupitermes, the largest Apicotermitinae (Isoptera, Termitidae) from the Amazon Rainforest, pp. 186-194 in Zootaxa 5633 (1) on pages 187-191, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5633.1.11, http://zenodo.org/record/15372700