UF CERTAIN TERMITE NESTS. 199 



The first care of the termites was to protect the combs and 

 larva? from the attacks of red ants as quickly as possible : the 

 restoration of the chambers to their normal condition was 

 deferred. 



A similar secretion to that emitted by the workers is poured 

 out by the soldiers when they bite. Doflein (13) says it causes 

 a brown stain which is " schwer abwaschbare. " It really 

 affects the skin to some depth, and does not disappear for 

 several days : I have known the stains to persist for eight days. 

 Handling the comb is one of the best ways of getting rid of the 

 soldiers. They attach themselves firmly to the skin, launch 

 themselves free from their previous support, and remain at 

 right angles to the fingers, waving their legs vigorously in the 

 air and pouring out their sticky saliva. They are so firmly 

 fixed by their mandibles that pulling them off usually 

 separates the head from the body. Their bite is scarcely 

 felt. 



As the termites, at least in some stages, are dependent upon 

 the fungi growing on the comb, it was thought that the 

 destruction of these by the use of copper sulphate might 

 involve the death of the insects. As a preliminary experiment 

 18 gallons of water were poured quickly into a nest of 

 Termes redemanni. This disappeared without filling the 

 entrance, as had been expected. Another more recent nest 

 was then selected and water was poured down for two hours 

 through a pipe delivering 15 gallons per minute. This 

 appearing equally fruitless, a small new nest was tried. 

 Unfortunately it was only possible to run in water at the rate 

 of 2 gallons per minute. The water rose in the chimney 

 to a depth of 3 inches only, and maintained that level 

 the whole time. After two hours the nest was opened. The 

 earth round the lowest chambers was damp, but no water had 

 entered any of them. It is evident that rain entering the 

 chimney will have no effect on the combs, and that the fungi 

 cannot be destroyed by pouring in fungicides. In no case 

 were the termites disturbed by this treatment. 



9(8)06 (H) 



