Morphology and Phylogeny of Reticulitermes sp. (Isoptera, Rhinotermitidae) from Cyprus.

Taxonomy and phylogeny of termites of the genus Reticulitermes in central and east Mediterranean lands still present some aspects of uncertainty, also due to the poor sampling of some areas. This study aims to contribute to the knowledge of east Mediterranean termites by presenting the first morphological and molecular data on Reticulitermes from Cyprus. Samples from 15 colonies were collected all over the island. Qualitative and quantitative morphological characters were analyzed in alates and soldiers. Partial sequences of the mitochondrial genes COII and 16S were used to evaluate genetic diversity of Cypriot colonies and to determine their phylogenetic relationships with taxa from central and east Mediterranean areas. Cypriot alates have some morphological features in common with the Israeli R. clypeatus: an enlarged postclypeus and a wide unpigmented margin of the eye. They are larger than R. clypeatus, but smaller than the west European species R. banyulensis, R. lucifugus corsicus and R. grassei. In Cypriot soldiers, two size groups can be identified, possibly in relation with the age of their mother colonies. Phylogenetic analysis shows that, contrary to what might be expected, the samples with the highest affinity with Cypriot ones are not those from the nearby mainland (south Turkey, Israel), but those from northeast Greece. Sampling in the nearby mainland is still poor, so the possibility that populations with affinity with Cypriot Reticulitermes exist it that region cannot be ruled out. Together with samples from Halkidiki peninsula, northeast Greece, north Turkey, and Crete, Cypriot Reticulitermes form a well supported northeast Mediterranean clade.