Density effect on alate wing-drop of Coptotermes formosanus (Isoptera: Rhinotermitidae)

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

4-23-2008

Abstract

Alate wing-dropping in termites is a distinct physiological event that occurs after alate swarming and prior to colony foundation. The factors inducing wing-drop and the underlying mechanism are not clear. In this study, we examined alate density effect on wing-drop behavior in the Formosan subterranean termite, Coptotermesformosanus Shiraki. The alates were collected from two sources, light traps and colonies kept in the laboratory. Alate groups were placed in Petri dishes (60×15mm) at different densities ranging from 1 to 20 per dish. The number of dropped wings and dealates were recorded at 5 time intervals after the initial set-up. The results showed that high alate density inhibited wing-drop behavior. Compared to the 1 alate/dish treatment, the 20 alates/dish density showed significant reductions in dealate percentage at almost all observation times. The inhibitory effects of 3, 5, 7 and 10 alates/ dish densities varied with alate populations and observation times. To explore the mode of action of wing-drop behavior, we investigated worker presence (40 workers + 1 alate/dish), soldier presence (10 or 20 soldiers + 3 alates/ dish) and dead alate presence (20 dead alates + 3 alates/dish) on alate wing-drop. The results revealed that the presence of workers significantly inhibited alate wing-drop, whereas soldiers and dead alates had no inhibitory effect on wing-drop. This suggests that certain types of physical (such as grooming) and/or chemical interactions among live workers and alates are involved in the inhibition of alate wing-drop behavior in this termite species.

Publication Source (Journal or Book title)

Sociobiology

First Page

381

Last Page

391

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