Tenuirostritermes

Distinguished from other Nasutitermitinae by the combination of elongated, slender mandibles in soldiers and a narrowed anterior head capsule. Unlike Nasutitermes, soldiers lack a pronounced frontal nozzle or tube. Differs from other mandibulate nasutitermitines by the extreme slenderness and curvature of the mandibles. Identification to species level requires examination of minor morphological details of soldier mandibles and measurements of head capsule dimensions.

Soldiers possess elongated, slender mandibles that are notably narrow and curved, distinguishing them from related nasutitermitine genera. The head capsule is typically constricted anteriorly, giving a narrowed or 'slender-snouted' appearance reflected in the genus name. Workers are pale, soft-bodied, and lack pigmentation, with a standard termite body plan of head, thorax, and abdomen. Reproductives have darkened, sclerotized bodies with two pairs of membranous wings of equal length.

Species occur in the Americas, with records from the United States (southern regions), Mexico, Central America, and South America. Specific range boundaries for individual species are poorly documented.

• NasutitermesBoth belong to Nasutitermitinae and share general body plan, but Nasutitermes soldiers possess a prominent frontal nozzle for chemical defense, whereas Tenuirostritermes soldiers rely on slender mandibles without such a structure
• SubulitermesSimilar mandibulate soldier morphology, but Subulitermes typically has shorter, stouter mandibles and different head capsule proportions

• termites
• higher termites
• nasutitermitines
• mandibulate soldiers

• BugGuide
• Wikipedia
• GBIF taxonomy match
• iNaturalist taxon
• NCBI Taxonomy
• Catalogue of Life