Abundance, Distribution, and Colony Size Estimates for
Reticulitermes
spp. (Isoptera: Rhinotermitidae) in Southern Mississippi

Howard, Ralph W.; Jones, Susan C.; Mauldin, Joe K.; Beal, Raymond H.

doi:10.1093/ee/11.6.1290

Cited by 82 publications

(39 citation statements)

References 5 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…Population sizes attained in laboratory colonies are low when compared with colony sizes observed in the field, which can be in hundreds of thousands (Howard et al, 1982;Forschler and Townsend, 1996;Marini and Ferrari, 1998;Tsunoda et al, 1999;Leniaud et al, 2009). It can be assumed that, in the years immediately following colony foundation, colony growth is slow and that it begins to accelerate later, when supplemental reproductives start to differentiate and contribute to reproduction.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Caste differentiation and growth of laboratory colonies of Reticulitermes urbis (Isoptera, Rhinotermitidae)

Ghesini¹,

Marini²

2009

Insect. Soc.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

A total of 280 laboratory colonies of Reticulitermes urbis were raised for 3 years, in order to observe caste differentiation and overall colony growth, and to investigate whether the initial composition (0, 2 or 4 nymphs; 0, 5, 10, 20 or 50 workers) affected colony survival, population growth and other colony dynamics. We also wanted to determine the minimum number of individuals needed to establish a vital colony. As a result, every colony beginning with less than 20 workers died within 60 weeks, while colonies beginning with at least 20 workers survived until the end of the tests, with varied survival rates dependent upon the initial size and the time of formation (summer or autumn). The number of nymphs did not affect colony survival and colony growth. Reproductives developed from nymphs within 2 weeks and later from workers. Many of the reproductives derived from nymphs were killed by workers. The majority of the colonies contained two reproductives 3 years after initiating the tests. In addition, a few individual workers were still alive at the end of the 3-year tests. At the end of the tests, the proportion of soldiers ranged anywhere from 5.23 to 7.69% of the total population. The number of viable ''juveniles'' from each colony was relatively low throughout the tests and the overall population growth was not sufficient enough to replace dead workers or increase the colony size considerably. These results indicate that the potential to establish viable and sustainable colonies for groups of R. urbis composed of 5-50 workers is very low.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Caste differentiation and growth of laboratory colonies of Reticulitermes urbis (Isoptera, Rhinotermitidae)

Ghesini¹,

Marini²

2009

Insect. Soc.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…It is thus not surprising that the ecology and ecosystem impacts of termites in temperate systems have been somewhat overshadowed by an interest in mitigating their impacts as pests. However, their abundances in natural settings can be substantial (Howard et al, 1982;Forschler & Townsend, 1996;Haverty et al, 2000;King et al, 2013) and their impacts on wood decomposition appear second only to wood-rot fungi in some temperate ecosystems (Bradford et al, 2014).…”

Section: Daniel S Maynard Et Almentioning

confidence: 99%

Temperate forest termites: ecology, biogeography, and ecosystem impacts

Maynard

Crowther

King

et al. 2015

Ecological Entomology

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Abstract. 1. Wood decomposition in temperate forests is dominated by termites, fungi, and some species of ants and beetles. Outside of urban areas, temperate termite ecology is largely unknown, particularly when compared to tropical termites and other temperate organisms in the functional guild of wood-decomposing animals.2. This review combines climate habitat modelling with knowledge of species physiology, behaviour, and community interactions to identify and prioritise future research on temperate termite ecology and biogeography.3. Using a correlative climate model, the regional distributions of three common temperate forest termite species are shown to correlate with different aspects of climate (e.g. mean versus minimum monthly temperature), but that overall their distributions within temperate systems correlate more strongly with temperature variables than with precipitation variables.4. Existing data are synthesised to outline how the subterranean, wood-nesting behaviour of most temperate forest termite species links their activity to an additional set of non-climate controls: wood type and tree species, soil depth, fungal activity, ant abundances and phenology, and competitive asymmetries among termite species.5. Although fine-scale estimates of temperate termite abundances are rare, we provide upper bounds on their ecosystem impacts and illustrate how their regional abundances may influence forest structure and habitat availability for other organisms.6. This review highlights that rigorous ecological studies in non-urban, intact ecosystems -with a particular focus on community interactions -are critically needed to accurately project future abundances, economic impacts, and ecosystem effects of temperate forest termites.

show abstract

“…Termite colonies in the southeastern US occur as frequently as 4.42 colonies ha -1 with each colony containing anywhere from a few thousand individuals to 9.5 million (Howard et al, 1982;Su et al, 1993). In some habitats they are as abundant as 10,000 individuals m -2 (Eggleton et al, 1996), are available year-round, extremely nutritive (Sogbesan and Ugwumba, 2008), and create suitable nest space for many ant species (Dejean et al, 1996).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Use of termites, Reticulitermes virginicus, as a springboard in the invasive success of a predatory ant, Pachycondyla (=Brachyponera) chinensis

Bednar

Silverman

2011

Insect. Soc.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Invasive ant species have general diet and nest requirements, which facilitate their establishment in novel habitats and their dominance over many native ants. The Asian needle ant, Pachycondyla chinensis, native throughout Australasia was introduced to the southeastern US where it has become established in woodland habitats, nests in close proximity to and consumes subterranean termites (Rhinotermitidae). P. chinensis do not occur in habitats lacking Rhinotermitidae. We suggest that subterranean termites are critical for P. chinensis success in new habitats. We demonstrate that P. chinensis is a general termite feeder, retrieving Reticulitermes virginicus five times more often than other potential prey near P. chinensis colonies. Odors produced by R. virginicus workers, as well as other potential prey, attract P. chinensis. Furthermore, P. chinensis occupy R. virginicus nests in the lab and field and display behaviors that facilitate capture of R. virginicus workers and soldiers. Termites are an abundant, high quality, renewable food supply, in many ways similar to the hemipteran honeydew exploited by most other invasive ant species. We conclude that the behavior of P. chinensis in the presence of termites increases their competitive abilities in natural areas where they have been introduced.

show abstract

Abundance, Distribution, and Colony Size Estimates for Reticulitermes spp. (Isoptera: Rhinotermitidae) in Southern Mississippi

Cited by 82 publications

References 5 publications

Caste differentiation and growth of laboratory colonies of Reticulitermes urbis (Isoptera, Rhinotermitidae)

Caste differentiation and growth of laboratory colonies of Reticulitermes urbis (Isoptera, Rhinotermitidae)

Temperate forest termites: ecology, biogeography, and ecosystem impacts

Use of termites, Reticulitermes virginicus, as a springboard in the invasive success of a predatory ant, Pachycondyla (=Brachyponera) chinensis

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About