Kolkata, West Bengal
Destructive it certainly is. People shudder in fear at the sight of it, and rightly so. These insects move in groups with tiny sharp teeth, devouring books, notebooks, bamboo poles, wooden furniture. They leave everything cleanly eaten.
They can even pierce through the concrete floor of the ground level and reach the upper floors. They chew through the walls and floors of two- and three-storeyed buildings, even wooden doors and windows. This notorious pest is the termite. Also known as white ant in English. Despite the name, termites are not part of the ant family. They belong to the family Termitidae, order Isoptera. The name Isoptera comes from the Greek words isos meaning equal and ptera meaning wings, as termites have equally sized front and hind wings. Ants, on the other hand, belong to the family Formicidae, order Formica. The word Formica is the origin of the name for the chemical formic acid, found in ant venom. Even a bite from a tiny red ant causes a burning sensation due to the formic acid.
There are about three thousand species of ants. Among them, two thousand one hundred belong to the Termitidae family. Termites are ancient insects. They existed in the age of dinosaurs and mammoths. When gigantic creatures roamed the earth and much of Europe and Asia were under ice, termites had already appeared. Over time, their size has become smaller due to evolution.
Termites have survived and not gone extinct because they are extremely industrious, disciplined, and organized. They live in groups and adapt to changes in nature.
Humans are often helpless against the attack of the tiny members of the Termitidae family. They eat up books, papers, wood, and furniture. They shred them into small bits and build their homes with those tiny pieces. These homes are called ant hills or termite mounds. The shapes of termite mounds vary. Some look like domes, others like churches. Some resemble mushrooms, while others are conical like a pointed banana flower. Termite mounds can be found in fields, open grounds, and forests across every continent except Antarctica. They are not seen in extremely cold regions because termites cannot survive in intense cold.
Ancient termite mounds have been discovered. In Brazil, researchers have found mounds over four thousand years old. In Africa, some are as old as thirty-four thousand years.
Termite mounds withstand storms, rain, and extreme heat. What are they made of? Research shows they are primarily made of oxides of various metals such as silicon, aluminum, iron, and titanium.
Being small, termites cannot carry heavy items. Therefore, their homes do not contain stone fragments. They build homes using fine metal particles, sand, dust, soil, and twigs. They live together in these homes. Some colonies have hundreds of members, while large mounds may house hundreds of thousands.
The visible termite mound extends deep underground, often two to three meters. Inside are countless chambers and tunnels. The king and queen of the termite colony designate specific spaces for different groups. The mound houses the king, queen, many workers, and soldiers. Eggs are carefully stored in chambers and hatch into larvae. Food is also stored in the chambers, enough to survive in all seasons. Surprisingly, there is a system for temperature control inside the mound. To protect against extreme heat or cold, temperatures are carefully regulated. Different rooms maintain different temperatures. How they manage this will be discussed shortly.
Before that, a few more words about termites. Their bodies are made of a protein called chitin, the same material found in shrimp and other insects. Most termites are blind. Some species have eyes but poor vision. In a termite colony, only the king and queen reproduce. A queen can lay more than forty thousand eggs per day and thus needs a lot of food. Soldiers bring her food. The queen lives for ten to fifty years. Apart from the king and queen, all members are either workers or soldiers. The soldiers defend the colony and supply food. They also care for the eggs and are always alert. When attacked, they fight fiercely until death.
Worker termites are constantly at work. They build new rooms, create tunnels, guard food storage, and construct termite mounds. But where do they get such energy? That will be discussed later. First, another point. Not every termite mound we see is inhabited. Once their work is done or the queen dies, they abandon the mound and form a new colony elsewhere. How to tell if a mound is abandoned? If a mound has many holes, it is uninhabited and contains no termites.
Poisonous chemicals (pesticides) have been developed to kill termites. These are used in households and farms. But termites also play a significant role in the ecosystem. They help decompose dead branches and animal bodies, enriching the soil. They are essential to forest growth.
Pangolins feed on termites. So, forests with pangolins have many termite mounds. Some species of ants like Megaponera analis also feed on termites. Many birds, frogs, and lizards eat them too. In some countries, people even eat termites.
It was mentioned that worker termites control the temperature inside the mound. Each chamber has a specific temperature. The nursery has one type, the egg chamber another. How do they maintain this in the extreme desert heat? Some chambers have double walls to block hot air. Special pathways carry heat out through tunnels to the outside. This clever method astonishes even highly intelligent humans. How did such primitive insects develop such techniques?
Can we not build houses in this way? Of course, we can. Some such buildings already exist. In Harare, Zimbabwe, the Eastgate Centre shopping mall is kept cool using natural methods. The building is designed to be open from north to south. Hot air from below travels through tunnels and escapes upward. This method was inspired by termites. This is biomimicry – imitating nature. High-speed train noses are shaped like bird beaks. Some cars are designed round like beetles for safety.
Scientists are also interested in termite intestines. A termite can produce two liters of hydrogen from a piece of paper. How? How do they digest plant-based cellulose? Enzymes in their guts break down the cellulose polymer chemically into glucose and hydrogen. Bacteria in their guts then turn this into cellulose acetate. This chemical supplies energy to termites.
The entire ecosystem includes insects, humans, plants, and animals. Any disturbance affects the balance. Protecting nature and biodiversity is today’s challenge. Before exterminating termites, let us think for a moment.
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