Life Cycle of Termites

Termites, infamous due to their destructive tendencies, actually have an interesting life cycle that incorporates the caste system. At birth, all termites are categorized as one of the following castes: workers, soldiers or reproductives. Once a termite has been categorized, it starts to develop physical features that aid in completing its caste's duties.

  1. Development

    • The termite undergoes a common insect metamorphosis, in stages, after birth: from egg, to nymph and finally, adult. This entire process takes about a year to complete. It is important to note that the termite will have reached maturity after five or six months of life and at that time its caste will be decided.

    Queen

    • There is only one queen per colony of termites. It is common for queen termites to lay millions of eggs in a year's time. The queen emits pheromones that prevent any other termites from developing into a queen termite.

    Larvae

    • After the queen lays her eggs, they hatch into larvae. These larvae will molt several times before developing into one caste.

    Soldiers

    • Soldiers are termites that failed to attain sexual maturity. Their primary duty is to defend the colony. To aid in defense, the soldiers form elongated heads and mandibles that act as scissors against their enemies.

    Workers

    • Otherwise known as the destructive termites, the workers are responsible for retrieving food and repairing any damage done to the colony.

    Reproductives

    • These are termites that have reached sexual maturity. These termites either replace the king or queen termite, if they happen to die, or leave the colony and start their own by becoming a king or queen.