TERMITES 



others reared above the surface, and still others built 

 against the trunks or branches of trees. Different species 

 employ different building materials in the construction 

 of their nests. Some use particles of earth, sand grains, 

 or clay; others use earth mixed with saliva; still others 

 make use of the partly digested wood pulp ejected from 

 their bodies; and some use mixed materials. Certain 

 kinds of tropical termites, moreover, have foraging habits. 





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Fig. 85. Vertical section of an underground nest of an African termite, Termes 

 badius. (From Hegh, after Fuller) 



The large central chamber is the principal "fungus garden"; in the wall at the 

 left is the royal chamber (re); tunnels lead from the main part of the nest to 

 smaller chambers containing fungus, and to the small mounds at the surface 



Great armies of workers of these species leave the nests, 

 even in broad daylight, and march in wide columns 

 guarded by the soldiers to the foraging grounds, where 

 they gather bits of leaves, dead stems, or lichens, and 

 return laden with provender for home consumption. 

 The underground nests (Fig. 85) consist chiefly of a 



HI 



