Reticulitermes speratus

Imamura etal. (1986) exposed particleboard made from acetylated wood to the termite species Coptotermes formosanus and Reticulitermes speratus. A forced feeding test according to the JWPA standard 11-1981, where the untreated or acetylated wood was the only food source, and a choice feeding test (where wood specimens were randomly placed on a termite breeding colony for 30 days) were used. With C. formosanus, there was limited attack of the fully acetylated boards, with about 50 % termite mortality after 3 weeks in forced feeding tests, whereas with R. sparatus there was virtually no attack and 100% mortality. 

Direct evidence for the use of hydrocarbons in nestmate recognition in social insects has been accumulating over the last fifteen years. When workers of the subterranean termites Reticulitermes speratus and Coptotermes formosanus were topically supplemented with the purified hydrocarbon profile of the other species, this was followed by an increase of aggression by nestmate soldiers (Takahashi and Gassa, 1995). Similarly, the topical application of (Z)-9-C23 1 onto the cuticle of workers of the ant Camponotus vagus resulted in increased antennation and threat in the form of mandible opening (Meskali et al., 1995b). These examples, however, concern qualitatively different hydrocarbons, and thus not variation in abundance that is typical for colonies of the same species. 

One of the few nonvolatile pheromones discussed in this chapter is a 14.5 kDa lysozyme protein identified as an egg recognition pheromone of the termite Reticulitermes speratus 933... 

Table 6 Weight Lx)ss (WL) of Formalized Cedar and Beech Blocks Due to Termite Attack After Forced-Feeding Tests with Coptotermes formosams for 9 Weeks and with Reticulitermes speratus for 2 or 4 Weeks...

Wood Reaction phase Time (h) Coptotermes formosanus WL (%) Reticulitermes speratus... 

Agent Cone. (%r Coptotermes formosanus Reticulitermes speratus ... 

The methanol extract of the bark of Phellodendron amurense was shown to possess strong antifeedant activity against the paper/wood termite pest Reticulitermes speratus. Partitioning and chromatography of the extract afforded four active antifeedant compounds, one of which was palmatine [215]. 

However, its penetration through the cuticle is low. Other hemipterous pests, such as sweet potato whitefiy, Bemisia tahaci, and the citrus mealybug, Planococ-cus citri, or melon thrips, Thrips palmi, and the termite, Reticulitermes speratus, are also very susceptible to this CNI 2. 

Park I-K, Shin S-C (2005) Fumigant activity of plant essential oils and components from garlic (Allium sativum) and clove bud (Eugenia caryophyllata) oils against the Japanese termite (Reticulitermes speratus Kolbe). J Agric Food Chem 53 4388-4392... 

We have examined a variety of plants, chosen for their traditional medicinal or insect control uses, for insecticidal and insect antifeedant properties. Our test insects are crop pests such as the tobacco cutworm Spodoptera litura, medically important insects (e.g the yellow fever mosquito Aedes aegyptii) or wood-destroying organisms such as the termite Reticulitermes speratus. 

Termite Antifeedant Choice Bioassay Two filter paper disks (2cm diam.) were treated with 25 pi of extract or solvent (acetone or methanol) in three replicates (250 pg/disk), and placed on moistened sand in 55 mm diam. petri dishes, with 30 Reticulitermes speratus workers. After 2 weeks, the amount of feeding on each disk was recorded using video image analysis (as described above). The same antifeedant index as in the leaf-disk bioassay was calculated. 

Asia. Takematsu and Yamaoka (1999) reported a study of CHCs in Reticulitermes from Japan and neighboring countries. They identified three distinct phenotypes among five subspecies of R. speratus (1) three subspecies from the Japanese mainland, (2) R. s. okinawanus and (3) R. s. yaeyamanus, the last two being considered as real species by the same author (from Takematsu, 1999, in Park et al., 2006). In addition, the hydrocarbon components of R. flaviceps flaviceps have been shown to differ from those of R. f. amami-anus, and those of R. miyatakei differed from those of three undetermined species. Based... 

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