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A new record of Mastotermes from the Eocene of Germany (Isoptera: Mastotermitidae)

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  14 July 2015

Torsten Wappler  and
Michael S. Engel
Torsten Wappler
Affiliation:
Hessisches Landesmuseum Darmstadt, Geologisch-Paläontologische und Mineralogische Abteilung, Friedensplatz 1, D-64283 Darmstadt, Germany
Michael S. Engel
Affiliation:
Division of Entomology, Natural History Museum, and Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, 1345 Jayhawk Boulevard, Dyche Hall, University of Kansas, Lawrence 66045-7163
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Extract

Termites (order Isoptera) are highly eusocial members of the superorder Dictyoptera. Species generally live in large, highly organized colonies with morphologically specialized worker and gyne castes, and in some lineages a soldier caste also occurs. The termites play an essential ecological role in the decomposition and recycling of a nutritionally poor, highly resistant, but extremely abundant substance: lignocellulose. This digestion is aided by symbionts (either intestinal Protista in lower termites, or fungi or intestinal bacteria in higher termites). In addition, methane excretion from termites contributes 2%–5% of the partial pressure of this gas in the Earth's atmosphere (Sugimoto et al., 2000). Considering all of these factors it is easy to understand why the approximately 2,900 termite species are among the most significant insects in many ecosystems throughout the world.

Type
Paleontological Notes
Information
Journal of Paleontology , Volume 80 , Issue 2 , March 2006 , pp. 380 - 385
Copyright
Copyright © The Paleontological Society 

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