Apsley Gorge


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Photos taken on 19th January 2003 of the walk from Budds Mare to Rowleys Creek

Apsley GorgeDCP_2046     07:37

Termite mound



Rowleys Creek Grid Reference 944.4 729.01




The image and text below come from the excellent site: http://www.termite.com/termites.html

The biology and behaviour of subterranean termites



Termites have a symbiotic digestive system. Only the worker termite caste can digest timber by the use of symbiotic protozoa in their gut. Worker termites feed their partly digested semi-liquid food, regurgitated from their mouth or passing from their anus, to the other termites, a process known as trophallaxis.

Termites have a well ordered social system with amazing engineering capabilities and an acute survival instinct; they obtain moisture from the soil and moist decaying timber, and communicate using pheromone signals.

The mutual feeding, constant grooming and close social habits of termites are used to advantage in modern termite control baiting systems. Subterranean termites need to maintain a high level of humidity and temperature (25 to 35c) in their central colony nest.

Termites eat through the centre of susceptible timbers leaving nothing but a thin veneer of timber and/or paint. They will pack mud in cracks and joints in timber to prevent loss of humidity and resultant dehydration.

Termite lif cycle Subterranean termites or "white ants" are not ants at all. Termites are in fact super specialised cockroaches with a similar 200 to 300 million year evolutionary history.

Within a termite nest there are members of different castes, each with a different role to perform and all interdependent upon each other for survival of the colony. These include the queen, king, the winged reproductive (young kings and queens), soldier and worker termites.

The queen termite is an egg laying machine; her body is enormous compared to her off-spring; she can live more than 25 years and produce more that 2,000 eggs a day.

The king and queen live in a central chamber and are tended by the workers.

The workers are by far the largest caste in the termite colony and the one that does the damage; they are a creamy translucent colour, soft bodied and carry out all work in the nest, including gathering food (timber and other cellulose); constructing tunnels; repairing and enlarging the colony nest; grooming each other and feeding the soldiers, the king, queen and also caring for the young nymphs until mature.

Worker termites are 3 mm to 4 mm long, have no wings, are sterile and blind; work 24 hours a day for several years life span in some species.

The soldiers commonly have an orange coloured armoured head with mandibulate pinchers which they use to crush an attacker, such as ants; some have hard pointed snout which eject a white sticky latex to ensnare their enemies.

The soldier termite is usually the first to be seen in large numbers when any active termite workings (shelter tubes or damaged timber) are opened. Soldier termites will rush out to guard the opening whilst worker termites repair the breach.

The swarmers (reproductives) are called "alates" and are commonly seen when they swarm on a hot humid summer evening around dusk; they have eyes; are poor fliers but are swept along by the wind; they land, drop their wings, find a mate to become king and queen of a new termite colony.

The swarmers are emitted in their thousands when a mature termite nest is large and well established. They land, shed their wings and attract a mate by pheromone chemical signal.




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Anyone (e.g. students, libraries, government agencies such as tourist bureaus, the general public) may use, print and publish these photographs taken by me and presented on this website for any legitimate non-commercial purpose, at no cost, and without asking permission. However a note such as "Photo: Don Hitchcock" in a small typeface somewhere in the document would be appreciated if it is to be published.