No soldiers? No problem! Ruptitermes arboreus, the "kamikaze" tree termite

[ItalianTermiteMan]

Here we can see a group of Ruptitermes arboreus termite workers...
but the soldiers? They have none!

Ruptitermes is a genus of soldierless termites endemic of the Neotropics, and while most of its species nest underground these R. arboreus are (as their name clearly point out) arboreal nesters and build their dark-colored mounds on trees. Several Ruptitermes (including R. arboreus) also forage in the open, a notable feat for species lacking soldiers.
Being soldierless, workers of this genus must defend themselves and their colonies without help and are thus particularly aggressive, readily biting with their stout mandibles; however their best weapon lies inside: if necessary, they can self-rupture their bodies and force out large quantities of a sticky and toxic fluid which can effectively entrap and kill small predators like ants. This self-sacrificing "kamikaze" behaviour, known as autothysis, is employed in different ways by several termites genera (variably by workers or soldiers) and some ants (most notably Colobopsis saundersi) aswell... it is in no small part thanks to such unorthodox defence strategy that these tiny and apparently vulnerable termites are able to open-forage in a predator-packed environement like the South American rainforests without having to invest in growing and mantaining a fully-fledged soldier caste!

Pic by Dr. Jan Sobotnik (Ttrmite Research Team); French Guyana.
Shared with permission.

 

[Ultum4Spiderz]

Here we can see a group of Ruptitermes arboreus termite workers...
but the soldiers? They have none!

Ruptitermes is a genus of soldierless termites endemic of the Neotropics, and while most of its species nest underground these R. arboreus are (as their name clearly point out) arboreal nesters and build their dark-colored mounds on trees. Several Ruptitermes (including R. arboreus) also forage in the open, a notable feat for species lacking soldiers.
Being soldierless, workers of this genus must defend themselves and their colonies without help and are thus particularly aggressive, readily biting with their stout mandibles; however their best weapon lies inside: if necessary, they can self-rupture their bodies and force out large quantities of a sticky and toxic fluid which can effectively entrap and kill small predators like ants. This self-sacrificing "kamikaze" behaviour, known as autothysis, is employed in different ways by several termites genera (variably by workers or soldiers) and some ants (most notably Colobopsis saundersi) aswell... it is in no small part thanks to such unorthodox defence strategy that these tiny and apparently vulnerable termites are able to open-forage in a predator-packed environement like the South American rainforests without having to invest in growing and mantaining a fully-fledged soldier caste!

Pic by Dr. Jan Sobotnik (Ttrmite Research Team); French Guyana.
Shared with permission.


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Wow so interesting !!! So they basically evolved to be kamikaze termites and don’t need soldiers. They all have small mandibles too like ants .. this stuff is so neat !

 

[viper69]

Very cool

Australia has very unique animals- do they have unique termite species that have or do something that no others do? Sort of like exceptions to the rule for the rest of termites?

 

[ItalianTermiteMan]

Very cool

Australia has very unique animals- do they have unique termite species that have or do something that no others do? Sort of like exceptions to the rule for the rest of termites?

They do: Mastotermes darwiniensis. This relic species is the most primitive termite alive and the only living member of the once thriving and widespread Mastotermitidae family, whose known fossil species range from the Cretaceous to the Miocene. Some fully unique characteristic of this large and very remarkable termite found only in norhtern Australia (and in a small part of New Guinea, where it was introduced by Australian soldiers in WW2) which link it to "traditional" cockroaches are the presence of anal lobes in the alate's hindwings and the laying of eggs in ootheca-like cases rather than singly. Primary queens and kings also look a lot like cockroaches! All in all a very interesting species that i will surely cover in a dedicated thread.