Snouted Harvester Termite vs Giant Gymnopleurus

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Snouted Harvester Termite Giant Gymnopleurus
Scientific Name Trinervitermes geminatus Gymnopleurus virens
Order Blattodea Coleoptera
Family Termitidae Scarabaeidae
Size Workers 3-4 mm, soldiers 4-5 mm 12-18 mm
Habitat Grasslands Grasslands
Diet Herbivores Dung Feeders
Regions West Africa (Nigeria, Ghana, Senegal) Sub-Saharan Africa
Conservation Not Evaluated Least Concern

Snouted Harvester Termite

A nasute termite common in West African savannas that harvests dry grass in large foraging columns. Soldiers defend the colony with a chemical spray from their pointed nasus.

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Did You Know?

Foraging columns of this species can strip a patch of grassland bare overnight during peak activity.

Giant Gymnopleurus

A medium-sized roller dung beetle with a coppery-green sheen and a nearly spherical body shape. It is a rapid roller, moving dung balls quickly across sun-baked grasslands. Diurnal and very heat-tolerant.

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Did You Know?

Its round, compact body shape minimizes water loss in the hot, dry environments it inhabits.