Termite mounds

Termitaria

Description:

Mound-building termites or just mound builders are a group of termite species that live in mounds. This group of termites live in Africa, Australia and South America. The mounds sometimes have a diameter of 30 metres. Most of the mounds are found in well drained areas. Termite mounds usually out live the colonies themselves. If the inner tunnels of the nest are exposed it is usually dead, however, sometimes other colonies occupy a mound after the death of the original builders. The new colonizers may be of the same or a different species. The structure of the mounds can be very complicated. Inside the mound is an extensive system of tunnels and conduits that serves as a ventilation system for the underground nest. In order to get good ventilation, the termites will construct several shafts leading down to the cellar located beneath the nest. The mound is built above the subterranean nest. The nest itself is a spheroidal structure consisting of numerous gallery chambers. They come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes. Some, like Odontotermes termites build open chimneys or vent holes into their mounds, while others build completely enclosed mounds like Macrotermes. The Amitermes mounds are created tall, thin, wedgie-shaped, usually oriented north-south.

Habitat:

Northern Australia is a big country shaped by a small insect: the termite. In many places the very look of northern savannas owes much to the mounds built by colonies of this insect. North Australian savannas have one of the most diverse range of termite mounds in the world: from the enormous buttressed cathedrals of spinifex termites, to the remarkably aligned magnetic mounds and miniature cities of columns built by various Amitermes species. Even more termite species, around three-quarters of those found in north Australia, are hidden from view, building nests within trees or underground. Most of these termite species are only found in Australia.