page_title: Blattodea
section_title: Termites
hierarchical_section_title: Blattodea / Termites
caption_attribution_description: A photo of two termite cathedral mounds in the Northern Territory of Australia Photo by Ray Norris
context_page_description: Blattodea is an order of insects that contains cockroaches and termites. Formerly, the termites were considered a separate order, Isoptera, but genetic and molecular evidence suggests an intimate relationship with the cockroaches, both cockroaches and termites having evolved from a common ancestor. The Blattodea and the mantises are now all considered part of the superorder Dictyoptera. Blattodea includes approximately 4,400 species of cockroach in almost 500 genera, and about 3,000 species of termite in around 300 genera.
  Termites are pale-coloured, soft-bodied eusocial insects that live in colonies, whereas cockroaches are darker-coloured, sclerotized, segmented insects. Within the colony, termites have a caste system, with a pair of mature reproductives, the king and the queen, and numerous sterile workers and soldiers. The cockroaches are not colonial but do have a tendency to aggregate and may be considered pre-social, as all adults are capable of breeding. Other similarities between the two groups include various social behaviours, trail following, kin recognition and methods of communication.
context_section_description: All species of termite are to some degree eusocial, and the members of a colony are differentiated into caste systems.  The majority of termite populations consist of the worker caste, which are responsible for foraging, nest building, grooming, and brood care. The soldier caste has one responsibility, which is to protect the nest from predators and other competitors. Soldiers have highly developed mandibles as well as many exocrine glands that can secrete multiple defensive substances harmful to predators.
  Normally, only the king and queen termite reproduce; the other castes are all sterile. There are two classes of reproductives: primary reproductives and neotenic reproductives. The primary reproductives class is responsible for colony creation and is characterized by compound eyes, wing marks (spots where wings once were before shedding), and defined sclerotization. Neonetic reproductives can develop from within the colony usually when one of the primary reproductives has died, or can develop in addition to the queen. Neonetic reproductives can experience two different phenotypes, one with wings and one without.  If neonetics are winged they will fly away from the parental colony, pair up and form a new colony, but if they are wingless they will remain within the parental colony. The different developmental routes taken by these two morphs are usually dependent upon food availability in the colony, or varying levels of parasitism within the colony. The caste into which any particular nymph will develop begins to become apparent among the late instars; at this time, potential reproductives will begin to show an increase in the size of the gonadal region.
  Termite colonies may be arboreal, mound-like or subterranean, with primitive termites nesting completely inside enclosed structures such as stumps or logs. Nest construction is largely from the termites' own faecal matter, other materials being chewed vegetable fibre, which makes a weak carton-like but waterproof substance, and soil, which makes a strong substance, but which is subject to erosion by water. Aerial nests are connected to the ground by enclosed passageways; the soft-bodied, blind workers of most species live permanently in their protected environments and do not venture into the open air. Trinervitermes trinervoides is an exception to this, with workers foraging in small groups on the surface at night, secreting noxious terpenes to deter predators. The nests are complex structures, and tunnels link them to the foraging areas. In Africa, termite mounds can be as large as nine meters tall and thirty meters in diameter, producing an area of increased fertility and creating a small hotspot for biodiversity.
caption: Cathedral termite mounds, Northern Territory, Australia
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