List of Headings
- i Methods used to investigate termite mound formation
- ii Challenging our assumptions about the nature of life
- iii Reconsidering the termite's reputation
- iv Principal functions of the termite mound
- v Distribution of termite mounds in sub-Saharan Africa
- vi Some potential benefits of understanding termite architecture
- vii The astonishing physical dimensions of the termite mound
- viii Termite mounds under threat from global climate change
- ix A mutually beneficial relationship
Questions 1-6
Drag a heading into each box.
1. To most of us, termites are destructive insects which can cause damage on a devastating scale. But according to experts, these pests may serve a useful purpose for us after all.
2. Termite mounds are impressive for their size alone; typically they are three metres high, and some as tall as eight metres when found.
3. This complex system of tunnels draws in air from the outside. It also serves to expel spent respiratory gases from the nest to prevent the termites from suffocating. The mound also automatically regulates moisture in the air, by means of its underground 'cellar', and evaporation from the top of the mound. Some colonies even had 'chimneys' at a height of 20m to better control moisture in the hottest regions of sub-Saharan Africa.
4. The termites feed the fungus with slightly chewed wood pulp, which the fungus then breaks down into a digestible sugary food to provide the insects with energy, and cellulose which they use for building.
5. As more information comes to light about the unique features of termite mounds, we may ultimately need to redefine our understanding of what constitutes a 'living' organism.
6. Soar hopes that the models will explain how termite mounds create a self-regulating living environment which manages to respond to changing internal and external conditions without drawing on any outside source of power. If they do, the findings could be invaluable in informing future architectural design, and could inspire buildings that are self-sufficient, environmentally, and cheap to run.