TERMITES, THE DESTROYERS 



77 



workers gnaw away in tiny bits with their strong 

 jaws. Wood is not easy to digest, even for a 

 termite, and these workers make use of a strange 

 way to get it done. Inside their bodies, in their 

 intestines, are thousands of very small one-celled 

 animals called Protozoa, which look, as Figure 34 

 shows, more like a decorative design than a wood 

 factory, but they are able to digest the wood 

 swallowed by the workers so that the termites 

 can use it for food. Some of the soldiers and the 

 royal family cannot even chew wood. For these 

 the workers produce a liquid like milk which 



Courtesy of U. S. Department of Agriculture 



Fig. 35. A book damaged by termites on shelf in room. 

 The damage was done in one^week's time 



gathers in drops around their mouths. The others 

 feed on this milk, and the workers may feed 

 each other or even swallow their own liquid. 



