Termites: what’s on their menu?

Termites (Coptotermes (C.) acinaciformis) use vibrations to assess their food sources, to eavesdrop on competitors and predators (including ants,  birds, rodents and reptiles) and give warnings to nest-mates.  They live in in colonies of up to several million individuals with a King and a Queen; are collaborative and well-organised; are herbivores, and either plant-dwelling, wood feeding, or soil-feeding, nesting on, in or adjacent to the organic material (substrate) they consume, within trees or directly in the soil. 

They are also significant economic pests, and research is vital to understanding more about how and why they forage and feed, said Sebastian Oberst, Centre for Audio, Acoustics and Vibration, TechLab, Faculty of Engineering and IT at the University of Technology Sydney.

We are learning more about these insects and their foraging behaviour which causes so much anxiety to homeowners.  They are actually quite discerning, contrary to the idea that they are voracious and indiscriminate feeders,

For the first time, in a study published in the Journal of the Royal Society Interface by Oberst and co-researchers, insight  shows how termite food preferences are based on five key material properties, proving C. acinaciformis prefer to eat denser wood with larger early wood content, preferably humid and highly damped.

Termites swarm when their populations grow too large for a nest and they are seeking a new food source. Our research identifies that there are multiple factors for selecting a new source, such as the quantity and quality of the food, and the wood as a medium for communication.

Previously thought to make decisions based on a single factor, this research shows termites are more sophisticated and actually consider multiple factors. They look for suitable substrate for three main purposes: as a food source; as a communication channel; and as building material for nests.

This enhanced understanding has practical implications for food choice experiments and knowledge, for studies concerned with communication in termites, and for creating termite-free conditions for wood-based building materials. 

“If we don’t know what they like, we can’t work out what they don’t like.” 

Improved knowledge of what attracts/repels will help manufacturers of particle board and wood substitutes develop termite mitigation solutions which are less dependent on, and more sustainable than, chemicals sprays.