INTERRELATIONS OF INSECTS 281 



An extraordinary type of mound is constructed by the " compass" 

 or ''meridian," termites of North Australia, for their wedge-shaped 

 mounds (Fig. 283), commonly eight or ten feet high, though sometimes 

 as high as twenty feet, are directed north and south with surprising accu- 

 racy. By means of this orientation the exposure to the heat of the sun is 

 reduced to the minimum, as occurs also in the case of many Australian 

 plants, the leaves of which present their edges instead of their faces to 

 the sun. 



More than one species of termite may inhabit a single nest; in one 

 South African nest Haviland found five species of termites and three of 

 ants. The widely distributed genus Enter mes is essentially a group of 

 inquiline, or guest, species. Termite mounds afford shelter to scor- 

 pions, snakes, lizards, rats, and even birds, some of which nest in them. 

 The Australian bushmen hollow out the mounds to make temporary 

 ovens, and even eat the clay of which they are composed, while hill- 

 tribes of India are accustomed to eat the termites themselves, the 

 flavor of which is said to be delicious. 



Ravages. In tropical regions the amount of destruction done by 

 termites is enormous, and these formidable pests are a constant source 

 of consternation and dread. They emit a secretion that corrodes 

 metals and even glass, while anything made of wood is simply at their 

 mercy. Always avoiding the light, they hollow out floors, rafters or 

 furniture, leaving only a thin outer shell, and as a result of their in- 

 sidious work a chair or a table may unexpectedly crumble at a touch. 

 Jamestown, the capital of St. Helena, was largely destroyed by termites 

 (1870) and had to be rebuilt on that account. 



In the United States and Europe few species of termites occur, and 

 they do little injury as compared with the tropical species; though our 

 common Reticulitermes flavipes occasionally damages woodwork, books, 

 plants, etc., in an extensive way, particularly in the Southern states. 



Termitophilism. Associating with termites are found various 

 other arthropods, mostly insects. The relations of these termitophilous 

 forms to the termites are, so far as is known, similar to those described 

 beyond between myrmecophilous species and ants. 



HONEY BEE 



For more than three thousand years the honey bee has been almost 

 unique among insects as an object of human care and study. It was 

 highly prized by the old Greeks and Romans (as appears from the writ- 



