INTESTINAL PROTOZOA OF TKKMITKS. Joe) 



state* I. Main ob-ervers have noted that termites attack books, 



pastel)*', inl, cloth, and wood pulp, but their ability t<> maintain 



them-elve- MI i he-e -ubstances has not been investigated. Think- 



it p"--ible th.it termites in large numbers, when fed cotton, 1 



do n<>t maintain themselves solely on the substance- pre-ent in 



the cotton, but continue to pass the wood, which they have 



, iou-ly eaten bcf-.re being changed to a diet of cotton, through 



their bod . a portion of it during each pa^~ gi md 



thu- .yivin", the fal-e impression of living on either the cotton or 



the filter paper, when in reality they were living on the wood 



.Inch miijit -till be present in their feces, I carried out 



the follov, ment: One hunderd termites were placed in 



ioo vials, IK- termite to each vial, and nothing but pure 



cellulo-, \\ 'man's filter paper) was fed them. Many of tl 



termite- led .MI active existence and continued to harbor pmto/oa 



until t riments were discontinued at the end of four months. 



|u-t how long termites can maintain themselves on a cellulo-e 



i- not known, but is being investigated by the writer at the 



ent time. 



Another experiment, which was first done by accident, -et -in- 

 to thro\\ considerable light on the direct cause of the de.it h of the 

 incubated and defaunated termites. Many of the cletaun. 

 lennit- bein;; fed cellulose and a Strong cellulose-decompos- 



accidently got into some of the vials, and it was noticed 

 that the termites in the vials containing the cellulose-digesting 

 luni;u- did not die within two to three weeks. Some of them 

 lived in tin- \ials with the fungus for more than three month-, 

 but in the vials containing some of the same defaunated termite- 

 and cellulo-e which was not digested by a fungus, death occurred 

 \\ithin t\\<> to three weeks. When this accidental and preliminary 

 experiment was repeated (see Table III.) the same result- v. 

 obtained. It seems quite evident, then, that incubated and 

 del'aunaied termites cannot digest cellulose. 



crllu n is really the only form of normal <!] : 



aixl ' ii?22) have made a careful study \ tin- irllulo.-r uf o.tton ami that i.i 



iu hide that the two are very similar, it net .il. The two, ac- 



'nx tn tliese investigators, are as much alike as tin- n-llulcsc- ulitaiiu-d imui th<- 

 .-aiiu- \\IM,,I by acid cooking and by alkalini- codkinx. I 'mil iimn- is kno\\-n rt-gard- 



;hr nature of cellulose in various sul>-tanccs \ VI may o.iHimir tin- usage of 

 calling o'tton "normal" cellulose. 



