Summary
The nest expansion behavior ofNasutitermes costalis, a common Neotropical arboreal termite, was analyzed by means of direct and photographic observation of a thriving laboratory colony over a 45-month period. 52 expansion episodes were recorded, each resulting in the addition of as much as 10% to the nest volume. The expansion process can be divided into 3 phases Initiation, Building, and Termination. Termination results in a nest surface whose shape focuses initial building efforts during the Initiation of subsequent expansion. Building consists almost entirely of multiple repetitions of a few simple architectural elements — primarily the branching of one wall into two and the joining of neighboring walls via a bridge — all occurring on a smooth “active surface” which persist throughout each expansion episode. Interesting similarities between certainN. costalis nest expansion architectural features and structures builtde novo by queened termite groups from 3 subfamilies of the Termitidae suggest that this is a relatively primitive mode of nest expansion.
Resume
Les mécanismes d'acroissement du nid deNasutitermes costalis, ont été analysés par l'observation directe et par la photographie d'une colonie prospère, élevée au laboratoire pendant plus de 45 mois. Nous avons enregistré 52 périodes d'accroissement, chacune entraînant une augmentation de 10% du volume du nid. On peut diviser le processus d'accroissement du nid en 3 phases: la phase initiale, la phase de construction, la phase finale. La phase finale aboutit à une surface dont la forme traduit la convergence des premiers efforts de construction pendant la phase initiale d'accroissement. La construction est basée presque entièrement sur des répétitions multiples d'un petit nombre d'éléments architecturaux simples, essentiellement la division, d'un mur en deux embranchements et la réunion de murs voisins au moyen d'un pont. Tout cela se passe sur une “surface active” lisse qui demeure ainsi tout le temps de chaque période d'accroissement. Les intéressantes similitudes entre certains traits architecturaux de l'accroissement du nid deN. costalis, et certaines structures construites «de novo» par des groupes de termites avec une reine et appartenant à trois sous-familles de Termitidae suggèrent que le mode d'accroissement du nid deN. costalis est relativement primitif.
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Jones, R.J. Expansion of the nest ofNasutitermes costalis . Ins. Soc 26, 322–342 (1979). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02223552
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02223552