TITLE:
Morphological Identification of Edible Termites (Isoptera) in Luanda Sub-County, Kenya
AUTHORS:
Ameka Caleb, Oyieke Helida, Elisheba Amolo, Muok Benard
KEYWORDS:
Termite, Morphological, Species, Diversity
JOURNAL NAME:
Advances in Entomology,
Vol.10 No.2,
March
17,
2022
ABSTRACT: Termites are social insects that live in colonies underground. Globally,
there are 3000 termite species, of which 39% are found in Africa. Termites are
used as food and livestock feed in most communities of the world. In Kenya,
termites are consumed by many communities, especially in the western region.
Termite species diversity across different parts of the Luanda sub-county was
established as there are many edible and non-edible species in the area. This
study assessed the species diversity of termites in Luanda sub-county,
and characterized them morphologically. Termites were sampled in Luanda
sub-county using the line transect method. The collected termites were
preserved in tubes containing 70% Ethanol. The preserved samples were taken to
the National Museums of Kenya for morphological identification up to species
level. Species richness of each habitat was analyzed for diversity (Shannon-Wiener)
index and Shannon index by using Vegan package version 1.16 - 32 in R. The
differences in species composition and diversity of termites were analyzed using one-way ANOVA. Morphological identification recorded
seven species, namely, Macrotermes herus, Macrotermes spp1, Macrotermes sp1, Pseudocanthotermes grandiceps, Macrotermes bellicosus, Macrotermes spp2 and Pseudocanthotermes militaris. The results of this study
showed that the Shannon diversity index H was 0.3606 while Simpson index D was 0.20644, which implied a
high species diversity of termites in Luanda sub-county a
leading producer of edible termites in Kenya.