694 Marvels of the Universe 
by birds, reptiles, and other insectivorous creatures ; but a few members of the swarm escape, 
and go off in pairs, male and female together, to found new communities. It is a curious fact 
that these royal Termites tear off their own wings immediately they reach the ground after their 
virgin flight. 
A termitarium, when once established, contains ordinarily a single royal pair. The king, when 
he has discarded his wings, is not an imposing personage; but before her reign is far advanced, 
the queen becomes the most amazing of all insects. She attains an almost incredible size and 
fertility, and her enormous body is vastly disproportionate to her head and thorax. She may 
produce as many as sixty eggs per minute. 
As the death of a queen Termite completely disorganizes the community of which she is the very 
source and mainspring, one is not surprised to learn that provision is made against this contin- 
gency. The workers rear a certain number of “ reserve queens,” each being capable, should occasion 
arise, of assuming the dignity and functions of a reigning queen. Science cannot yet tell us in what 
manner these reserve royalties are produced. They are indistinguishable from the rank and file 
when they leave the egg; but the worker Termites possess a mysterious power of modifying, 
checking, or accelerating the development of the young at will; and from eggs which appear 
to be identical when they are laid by the queen, can produce royalties, soldiers, workers, or 
any of the intermediate forms which play a part in the economy of the community—just 
as they wish, or in accordance with the demands of the moment. Probably a dietary, selected 
both in quantity and quality, will bring about this result ; possibly, also, there is a system of 
massage and surgery. 
The nests of Termites vary greatly in appearance, and many of them are very remarkable. 
Some of the less populous communities dwell within the decayed stumps and branches of trees, 
Photo by] [W. Saville Kent. 
A CURIOUS TERMITE NEST. 
This type of nest belongs to a particular species of White Ant, which also lives on grass and has nothing to do with the 
wood-boring species. These nests will, when fully developed, attain a height of fourteen feet. 
