GENERIC REVISION OF THE SMALLER NASUTE TERMITES OF THE GREATER ANTILLES (ISOPTERA, TERMITIDAE, NASUTITERMITINAE)

The generic status of the Greater Antillean smaller nasutes (all gener a except Nasutitermes) is revised, paying special attention to anatomi cal characters of the workers. Two new monotypic genera, Caribitermes and Antillitermes, are created. Terrenitermes Spaeth, 1967, is synonym ized with Parvitermes Emerson (in Snyder 1949). The following new comb inations are proposed: Parvitermes aequalis (Snyder, 1924a) (formerly in Obtusitermes), Parvitermes antillarum (Holmgren, 1910) (formerly in Velocitermes), Parvitermes toussaiti (Banks, 1919) (formerly in Terre nitermes), Caribitermes discolor (Banks, 1919) and Antillitermes subti lis (Scheffrahn & Krecek, 1993) (both formerly in Parvitermes). The 2 mainland species formerly assigned to Parvitermes should be removed fr om this genus: one resulting new combination is Velocitermes laticepha lus (Snyder, 1926), whereas the actual taxonomic position of the speci es described as Parvitermes bacchanalis Mathews, 1977, remains unclear . With the exception of a Constrictotermes species present in Cuba, th e smaller nasute fauna of the Greater Antilles and adjacent Bahamas an d Virgin Islands now appears endemic to this region at the genus level . We hypothesize that an ancestor related to Obtusitermes diversified in the Greater Antilles and gave rise to all Parvitermes, Caribitermes and perhaps Antillitermes species.