Termite Web

Mention the word “termites”, and most people will immediately think of some type of whitish colored insect that feeds on wood and can damage buildings. It is true that termites can damage wooden structures and that most of them eat wood, but when you consider there being thousands of species of termites in the world, [...]

Mound building termites are probably the most advanced architects in the animal kingdom. The main family of termites that build large and advanced mounds are the Macrotermitinae. Although better known from Africa, mound building Macrotermes species are also well distributed throughout tropical Asia as well.

With termites, their droppings are either liquid or solid, and this depends on the type of termite in question. Did you know that termites are the only insects that make full use of their droppings in as many ways as possible, literally? Many species of termites make use of their droppings in their nest construction [...]

Termites are one of the longest living insects in the world, but this only applies to the termite queen, which in some species, may live for a decade or even more. The typical termite worker or soldier has a lifespan of about 1-5 years, but this depends a lot on the species and the environment [...]

Termites are very ancient organisms; they have even existed before ants. So, perhaps it can be regarded that ants “adapted” their complex social structure from the termites, and not the other way around. What I notice is that termites back then and today are not much different in terms of morphology, or how they look.

Macrotermes gilvus (Macrotimitinae) is the most common mound building termite throughout South East Asia, but at the same time, there are also several subspecies which have slight variation, mostly in terms of size. They build a stout mound which under good conditions, may attain large size, and reach almost 2 meters in height.

Termites. Most people loath termites because of their reputation. But termites have been around on the earth for a very long time, and are essential to many habitats and ecosystems – Far longer than most creatures on earth today. Known as “white ants” to some folks, termites are most numerous in the tropics, but they [...]