''Termitotrox cupido'' is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

of scarab beetle in the subfamily

Termitotroginae Termitotroginae is a monotypic subfamily of the family Scarabaeidae, the scarab beetles. The only genus in the subfamily is ''Termititrox''. A second genus, ''Aphodiocopris'', Arrow, 1920, has been synonymised with ''Termitotrox''. All known mem ...

. It was first described by Munetoshi Maruyama in 2012, having been discovered living inside a nest of the termite '' Hypotermes makhamensis'' in Cambodia. It is a tiny, blind and flightless insect.

Description

''Termitotrox cupido'' grows to a length of and at the time of its description was the smallest known scarab beetle. It is a blind, flightless beetle with semi-spherical

elytra An elytron (; ; , ) is a modified, hardened forewing of beetles (Coleoptera), though a few of the true bugs (Hemiptera) such as the family Schizopteridae are extremely similar; in true bugs, the forewings are called hemelytra (sometimes alterna ...

which are sculpted with deep longitudinal grooves. The elytra bear wing-shaped trichomes (outgrowths), a feature that distinguishes this species from other members of the genus. The head, thorax and elytra are reddish-brown with a matt surface and the trichomes are a paler colour. The specific name "cupido" comes from the resemblance of the trichomes to the wings of Cupid, the child god from

Greek mythology A major branch of classical mythology, Greek mythology is the body of myths originally told by the ancient Greeks, and a genre of Ancient Greek folklore. These stories concern the origin and nature of the world, the lives and activities ...

Distribution and habitat

The genus '' Termitotrox'' comprises eleven species of scarab beetle, eight from Africa and three from the Indian subcontinent. These beetles have no wings and are blind, and the previously known species all live inside the nests of termites of the genera '' Odontotermes'' and '' Protermes''. These termites construct chambers in which they deposit faecal pellets on which a fungus grows. The termites feed on the "fungal comb" produced and the beetles are also found on the comb. ''Termitotrox cupido'' has been found inside

colonies In modern parlance, a colony is a territory subject to a form of foreign rule. Though dominated by the foreign colonizers, colonies remain separate from the administration of the original country of the colonizers, the '' metropolitan state'' ...

of the termite '' Hypotermes makhamensis'' in Cambodia, living on the walls of the chambers that house the fungus garden. This is the first time a member of the genus ''Hypotermes'' has been found to be associated with a beetle. The host termites live in tropical dry evergreen forests and build above-ground mound-type nests. The termites forage among the leaf litter and in tree stumps and rotting logs and bring partially digested plant material back to the nest to deposit in the fungus garden.

Beetle behaviour

The behaviour of ''Termitrox'' beetles living

symbiotically Symbiosis (from Greek , , "living together", from , , "together", and , bíōsis, "living") is any type of a close and long-term biological interaction between two different biological organisms, be it mutualistic, commensalistic, or parasit ...

inside termite colonies has been little studied. In the case of ''T. cupido'', the trichomes on the elytra are thought to be composed of glandular tissue which may produce chemicals that influence termite behaviour. Adults of another species of beetle that lives in termite nests were observed being carried around by their ''

Macrotermes ''Macrotermes'' is a genus of termites belonging to the subfamily Macrotermitinae and widely distributed throughout Africa and South-East Asia. Well-studied species include ''Macrotermes natalensis'' and '' M. bellicosus.'' Like other genera i ...

'' hosts, in a manner similar to the way the termites carry their young. The function of these beetles in their termite colonies is unclear but it seems that they are likely to be obligatory termitophiles and somehow contribute to the nest environment of their fungus-growing hosts.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q2496496 Scarabaeidae Beetles of Asia Endemic fauna of Cambodia Insects of Cambodia Beetles described in 2012 Wingless beetles