Termite Architecture — by Grant Bolton

Termites (insect order Isoptera) don't just chew up the occasional log or house foundation. In the tropics, where they are far more diverse than the mere 3 species we have here in Washington, they are among the leading decomposers, and have huge nests, often with tens or hundreds of thousands of individuals. The nests can be entirely underground, mainly above ground, or something in between. The structure of the nests can be as diverse as the group itself (nearly 3,000 living species named).

Dr. Bolton (after introducing us to termites), will discuss recent work on termite nest architecture done by Dr. Chun-I Chiu in Thailand and Taiwan. The species Dr. Chiu studies include Odontotermes formosanus (left, above) which nests underground, and Globitermes sulphureus (right, above) which makes impressive mounds. Learn about a type of urban architecture you may never have contemplated before!

Grant Bolton earned his PhD in entomology from the University of Missouri — Columbia. However, instead of doing research of his own, he interprets the research of others and presents it to a wider audience than it might otherwise find. For this program Grant interviewed Dr Chiu about his Thailand termite work. And now he’s agreed to present it to Scarabs! Don’t miss it.

Scarabs' new Zoom Czar, Matt Neumann, has created a special link you can click to get to each month's Scarabs session, regardless if the specific meeting ID changes. You should get this link (or it will become visible) if you RSVP here (passcode is 816620). If you attend by phone, you'll need the old-fashioned numerical Zoom code, and anyone doing that should refer to their print newsletter (or, if not a subscribing member, contact us well ahead of time please!). Go to Zoom not long before the meeting starts, otherwise the link may not be active. And if anything about this new system misfires, tell us so we can trouble-shoot for next time!