These tree hollows are a critical and, with the excessive clearing of old trees, often limiting factor in the population level of hole nesting birds and animals. The nesting hollows are one of the factors that makes old growth forest especially valuable as habitat. Conversely, it is the absence of nest holes that makes young regrowth or plantation forests less valuable as habitat. Arboreal termite mound with Kingfisher nest. Termites can destroy our wooden structures and usually we go to great pains, even using long lasting organoclorine insecticides, to protect our houses.
Termites are arguably the greatest builders in the animal world.
Some nests in Northern Australia being over three metres tall. They are air conditioned to keep the temperature and humidity in the nest in the best range. The nests are flat sided with the flat sides facing east and west so these big walls do not pick up too much heat from the sun at the hottest part of the day. The cylindrical termite nests in Northern Australia are actually a silo in which the termites store dry grass, all chopped up into pieces about 1 cm long. This is the food store for times of shortage and unfavourable weather.