Page 24 - The Miracle of Termites

Harun Yahya

At first, the queen resembles any other termite, but gradually she will become
huge, growing so large that she cannot move, and the workers will be respon-
sible for caring for her. It is God that informs the workers of the queen's needs
and teaches them how to supply them.

As with a colony of bees and ants, it is the queen that ensures or-
der and continuity. There is a queen in the center of every termite col-

ony. The king and queen live in a special room in the nest where they
are looked after by the workers. This room, the heart of the colony, is
the most vulnerable place in the nest and therefore, the best protected.
The queen has grown too large to move; when she began laying eggs,

her body hugely enlarged up to 14 cm (5.5 inches) long and 3.5 cm (1.4
4
inches) across. Since she is unable to feed herself, other members of
the colony take care of her. The workers responsible for feeding the
queen satisfy her needs unfailingly, always at the right time.
Even though she cannot move, the queen keeps tight control over

her nest's order, security and the many needs. In the following chap-
ters, we'll examine exactly how the queen is able to do this by herself.

22 THE MIRACLE OF TERMITES