In termite hindguts, fermentative production of acetate--a major carbon and energy source for the insect--depends on efficient removal of inwardly diffusing oxygen by microbes residing on and near the hindgut wall. However, little is known about the identity of these organisms or about the substrate(s) used to support their respiratory activity. A cultivation-based approach was used to isolate ...

Soldier and worker castes of lower wood-feeding termites, Reticulitermes flavipes, differ in morphology and diet, and may therefore play host to distinct bacterial communities. While many studies have attempted to characterize the gut microbiota in lower termites, to date no study exists which explores the differences in bacterial communities in these two lower termite castes . In this study TR...

Saproxylic arthropods are thought to play an important role in wood decomposition but very few efforts have been made to quantify their contributions to the process and the factors controlling their activities are not well understood. In the current study, mesh exclusion bags were used to quantify how arthropods affect loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) decomposition rates in both seasonally floode...

The subterranean termite Reticulitermes chinensis Snyder is an important pest of trees and buildings in China. Here, we characterized genetic structure and reproductive modes of R. chinensis from China for the first time. A total of 1,875 workers from 75 collection sites in Huanggang, Changsha and Chongqing cities were genotyped at eight microsatellite loci. Analysis of genetic clusters showed ...

Subterranean termite infestations occur in every state in the contiguous United States and are responsible for damage to wooden structures in excess of two billion dollars (U.S.) annually. Essential oils have historically been used to repel insects. They have relatively low toxicity and some of them are exempt from regulation by the Federal Insecticide Fungicide and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA). Dev...

The chloro-nicotinyl insecticide imidacloprid is used extensively as a soil treatment against subterranean termites. We conducted the Þrst study of the metabolic fate of imidacloprid in termites, by exposing workers of the eastern subterranean termite, Reticulitermes flavipes (Kollar) (Isoptera: Rhinotermitidae) to radiolabeled imidacloprid through topical application and ingestion. Several day...

Abstract This research evaluates and characterizes the acoustic emission activity generated by Reticulitermes termites as recorded piezoelectric sensors with sensitivity in ultrasound range (greater than 20 kHz). To this end, was under controlled conditions of temperature moisture content three pine wood samples which were artificially inoculated: only soldiers, workers, or a colony workers sol...