Page 100 - The Miracle of Termites

Cleaner

Termites

I n some areas where wooden houses predominate, termites have

become a nightmare, but actually they are very useful creatures.
They play an important role in maintaining the ecological balance.
They carry dead plants, dead insects and animal waste into their un-
derground nests. This is very important because otherwise there
would be countless numbers of dead insects littering the ground. But
as if with a silent hand, termites and other creatures quietly and quick-
ly dispose of these dead insects. In this way, the ground is cleaned of
excess material.
If the ground were not cleaned by termites and other insects, it

would become a continually growing waste dump, and every day it
would be more difficult for the sun and minerals to reach the soil.
Termites have another use apart from cleaning the ground. They
are among the rare creatures that can digest plant material; and as they
decompose the cellulose in plants, they help in the formation of meth-
ane. As the protozoa in the termite's digestive system decompose the
cellulose, they release methane gas. In 1932, a scientist by the name of