Termites

Fencepost

Construction

Termites, masters of construction, any time, any place, anywhere.

Termites

Termite art

Trogan nest

The remains of a black-tailed trogan egg down in the dark cavern of a termite nest. I used the flash for light.

Red sawdust

I'm not really sure what's going on here. I assume termites eating the remains of this tree trunk, but I'm not sure why the large amount of sawdust coming out of the piece, or why it's red.

Tapajós, continued

There were several of these termite nests around the area where we got stuck. I'm assuming that they're termite nests. Unlike the termite nests of the planalto (highlands), there was no easy way of finding out. The building material for this nest, almost a meter high, was like a hard sandstone.

3 nests, 1 tree

We don't see a lot of visitors at Bosque Santa Lucia, but when we're so fortunate, I normally begin the ecological tour right under the tree we see in the attached image. Some people are quite quick to ask what that big black ball is up in the tree, but seldom do they see the other nests. Obviously the black mass is a termite nest. Down to the left is another insect nest quite different than the termite one. It's a tachi ant nest. Then further over to the left is a bell wasp nest, which sort of stands out on its own. The tree is mango, which is an exotic here, but one that has taken over the country. Wherever man has been, you can be sure that there are mango trees. There are many varieties of mango. This one is called "cavalo" because it produces a horse of a mango, a huge thing that normally gets opened up when it hits the ground.

Termites

Some well-polished termites are a bit upset with my intrusion into their home. Can't say I blame them. Sorry, but there are some folks who haven't seen your likes.

Termites, earth builders

For those of you who have followed my tropical biodiversity blog, you know that our soils are extremely poor. It's the litter on the ground that provides food to the forest. Termites play a big role in decomposing this litter into nutrition. I was overwhelmed to see the amount of organic soil left behind by the termites after abandoning their nests, per the previous post. We distributed wheelbarrows of it to new trees and plants around the reception center. I would say, "long live the termites", but there's no need. They will inherit the earth after we destroy it. And they will rebuild it!

Termites, earth builders

These termite nests were a favorite sightseeing stop for many visitors going to Bosque Santa Lúcia. Eventually the termites decomposed the tree stumps and all the nests fell over on the ground. We used the nesting material you see in the image for fertilizer. What surprised me was the amount of rich dirt under the nests. Next image.