recently described termite species Cryptotermes mobydicki, whose soldier caste has an elongated head that resembles a sperm whale’s head in side view.�What’s special about itThe soldier has an unusually long, blocky head with hidden mandibles, so the jaws are mostly covered by the head capsule, similar to how a sperm whale’s jaws sit under its massive forehead.�In lateral view, the “forehead” bulge and the position of the antennal socket line up visually with a sperm whale’s forehead and eye, which is why researchers chose the name mobydicki as an homage to Moby Dick.�It was discovered in the canopy of a dead standing tree in a South American rainforest and adds a new species to the drywood termite genus Cryptotermes.�
