Termite ecology came of age in 1978 with the seminal review of Wood and Sands which by considering the quantitative contributions made by termites to the carbon cycle at the landscape level concluded that they were major players in tropical ecosystems. Subsequent field work in the succeeding two decades was summarised in 2000 by Bignell and Eggleton, the most recent review which attempted to cover the entire topic in detail, which included 188 listed references and has been extensively cited for almost 20 years. Subsequent summaries more narrowly defined or in some cases more superficial are listed in the bibliography. In this overview, the main and subsidiary headings in Bignell and Eggleton are revisited and reclassified in the light of 186 selected articles added to the relevant literature since 2000, and some earlier work. While the literature on termite ecology remains buoyant, it has declined relative to publications on other aspects of termite biology. Overall, the thesis that termites have a major impact on, and are major indicators of soil health and landscape integrity in the tropics and sub-tropics is maintained, but the drivers of local diversity, abundance and biomass remain complex, with many biographical, edaphic and optimum sampling issues not completely resolved. The large increase in diversity and abundance data from Neotropical biomes can also be noted.

Termites originated from wood-feeding cockroaches and are dominant members of the saproxylic insect community in many tropical and subtropical biomes. Their ecological role comprises comminution (shredding) of dead organic material, bioturbation (mixing of organic and mineral material in soil horizons) and lignocellulose digestion (contributing to the decomposition arm of the global carbon cycle). The key adaptations of termites are their symbioses, mainly internal, with protists, archaea, bacteria and (in a special case) fungi. Thus the evolution of modern termites from the detritus-feeding common ancestor of termites and wood-feeding cockroaches can be reconstructed as a stepwise process to secure the transfer of increasingly specialised intestinal symbionts from parent to offspring. This selection resulted in the extant eusociality of all termites, characterised by generational overlap, proctodaeal feeding, altricial development, paedomorphosis and co-evolution with microorganisms. An account is given of their typical abundance, biomass, trophic diversification and impacts on soil health and the terrestrial carbon cycle. Termite behaviour associated with finding and consuming woody resources is also considered. An overview of the symbioses between termites and microbes is presented, focused on recent work revealing the relative contributions of host and microbiota to the digestion of lignocellulose. A separate account of the fungus-growing subfamily Macrotermitinae is added, as their impact on organic decomposition in Africa and Asia is substantial.

In this review the evolution of modern termites from the detritus-feeding common ancestor of termites and wood-feeding cockroaches is reconstructed as a stepwise process, driven by the need to secure the transfer of increasingly specialised intestinal symbionts from parent to offspring. This selection resulted in the extant eusociality characterised by generational overlap, proctodaeal feeding, altricial development, paedomorphosis and co-evolution with microorganisms. Further, it is argued that the behavioural and ontogenetic characteristics of termite societies overly the internalisation of a community of microorganisms derived from and representing an earlier external rumen. To demonstrate the contemporary ecological importance of termites in the tropics and subtropics, an account is given of their typical abundance, biomass, trophic diversification and impacts on soil health and the terrestrial carbon cycle. An overview of the symbioses between termites and microbes is presented, including tabulations of the major flagellate and bacterial taxa forming the intestinal communities and a discussion of their presumptive roles, especially the relative contributions of host and microbiota to the digestion of lignocellulose. A separate account of the fungus-growing subfamily Macrotermitinae focuses on uncertainties concerning the role of the basidiomycete symbiont and its evolution. Finally, the available information on the relative processing of plant polysaccharides and lignin by termites is evaluated, with a brief summary of new insights made possible by molecular sequencing.

Fipronil is an insecticide used for termite control in forest plantations. Although pest species need to be restricted, the effects on non-target termites are unknown. The effects of fipronil application on the termite community composition, species richness and functional group diversity were assessed in four different treatment plots (new eucalyptus plantations respectively treated and untreated with fipronil; naturally regenerating secondary forest and the parent native Brazilian savanna) at three different times (90 days before and 90 and 180 days following) clonal seedling planting. A total of 53 termites species belongs to families Termitidae and Rhinotermitidae were collected. The mean richness of termite species differed significantly among the treatments and times. Grass feedings showed the highest overall richness in the plot under natural regeneration 90 days before planting. Soil feedings had higher richness in the control treatment (native savanna) and in the plot under regeneration at 180 days after planting. No significant differences in richness of wood feedings termites were detected in any comparison. Termite assemblage composition in the new eucalyptus plantations did not differ between the fipronil-treated and fipronil-untreated plots. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Biology of Termites: A Modern Synthesis (Bignell DE, Roisin Y, Lo N, (Editors), Springer, Dordrecht, 576pp, ISBN 978-90-481-3976-7, e-ISBN 978-90-481-3977-4, DOI 10.1007/978-90-481-3977-4) was published in 2011. With the agreement of the publishers, we give a taxonomic index of the book comprising 494 termite entries, 103 entries of other multicellular animal species mentioned as associates or predators of termites, with 9 fungal, 60 protist, and 64 prokaryote identities, which are listed as termite symbionts (sensu stricto). In addition, we add descriptive authorities for living (and some fossil) termite genera and species. Higher taxonomic groupings for termites are indicated by 25 code numbers. Microorganisms (prokaryotes, protists, and fungi) are listed separately, using broad modern taxonomic affiliations from the contemporary literature of bacteriology, protozoology, and mycology.

Multi-taxon surveys were conducted in species-rich, lowland palaeotropical and neotropical forested landscapes in Sumatra, Indonesia and Mato Grosso, Brazil. Gradient-directed transects (gradsects) were sampled across a range of forested land use mosaics, using a uniform protocol to simultaneously record vegetation (vascular plant species, plant functional types (PFTs) and vegetation structure), vertebrates (birds, mammals) and invertebrates (termites), in addition to measuring site and soil properties, including carbon stocks. At both sites similar correlations were detected between major components of structure (mean canopy height, woody basal area and litter depth) and the diversities of plant species and PFTs. A plant species to PFT ratio [spp.:PFTs] was the best overall predictor of animal diversity, especially termite species richness in Sumatra. To a notable extent vegetation structure also correlated with animal diversity. These surrogates demonstrate generic links between habitat structural elements, carbon stocks and biodiversity. They may also offer practical low-cost indicators for rapid assessment in tropical forest landscapes.

Changes in biopolymer products during transit of the intestine in two termites with contrasting feeding habits were quantified by pyrolysis mass-spectrometry. In Zootermopsis nevadensis, a wood-feeder, native lignin-derived fractions increased in the faeces, with little indication of modification or degradation, but 62% of hexose polymer and 43% of xylan were degraded. In the soil-feeding Cubitermes ugandensis, polysaccharide and alkene-derived mass ions were enriched in faeces while amino acid-derived ions were depleted, consistent with a proposed model of fermentative digestion supported by peptides released from soil organic matter. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

As soil engineers, termites play a key role in the functioning of many tropical and subtropical ecosystems. This reviews assesses advances in our knowledge of the beneficial influences of termites on ecosystem functioning and services. Termites are amongst the main macroinvertebrate decomposers in arid and semi-arid environments, and exert additional impacts through the creation of biostructures (mounds, galleries, sheetings, etc…) with different soil physical and chemical properties. They influence the distribution of natural resources such as water and nutrients in the landscape and consequently the diversity of soil microbes, plants and animals. Surprisingly, considering the wide range of ecosystem services provided by termites, few researches have been reported on the utilization of termite activity for the management of soil fertility or for the rehabilitation of degraded soils. In our final section, we discuss the main obstacles hampering the development of such approaches and we suggest that ecosystems services provided by termites are not sufficiently appreciated, especially in the context of long-term processes and possible biotechnologies derived from a detailed knowledge of their biology.

David E. Bignell Queen Mary, University of London London, England Jerome Tondoh Université d’Abobo-Adjame Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire Luc Dibog Institut de Recherche Agricole pour le Développement Yaoundé, Cameroon Shiou Pin Huang Universidade de Brasília Brasília, DF, Brazil Fátima Moreira Universidade Federal de Lavras Lavras Minas Gerais, Brazil Dieudonné Nwaga Université de Yaoundé Yaoundé, Cameroon Beto Pashanasi Universidad Nacional de la Amazonia Peruana Yurimaguas, Peru Eliane Guimarães Pereira Universidade Federal de Itajubá Itajubá, Minas Gerais, Brazil Francis-Xavier Susilo University of Lampung Sumatra, Indonesia Michael J. Swift Tropical Soil Biology and Fertility Institute of CIAT Nairobi, Kenya

The chapter reviews termite gut structure and associations with mutualists, now informed by a great increase of data on intestinal microbial diversity made possible in the last decade by molecular genomics, and in the light of contemporary theories on the origin, evolution and trophic diversification of the Isoptera. Detailed morphological descriptions are not given, but the more modern synoptic literature on anatomy, histology and in situ coiling is listed and discussed in relation to current concepts of the termite gut as a bioreactor system. Knowledge of intestinal microbiology, and of microbial physiology and metabolism, has outstripped progress in understanding secretory and absorptive processes by the gut wall and associated structures, such that the primary substrates fermented in the hindgut and the end products utilised by the termite host are still not precisely identified in many cases. Current perceptions of the specialised digestive processes of fungus-growing and soil-feeding termites are summarised, and an overarching evolutionary thesis is proposed, arguing that social organisation in termites has developed primarily to safeguard the fidelity of symbiont transmission between individuals and generations.

Previous studies in Sundaland (Borneo. Sumatra. Java and Peninsular Malaysia) have shown that termite assemblages in natural forests have a characteristic structure. These typical forest assemblages contain many soil-feeding species. However, this study investigated Four natural forest sites in Borneo with depauperate termite assemblages, and compared their soils with soils from Four other sites that have typical termite assemblages. In contrast to the typical assemblages. the four depauperate assemblages all have low species density (<35%), low relative abundance (<30%). a virtual absence of soil-feeders. significantly fewer wood-feeders. and a near-absence of species of Rhinotermitidae, Amitermes-group. Termes-group, Pericapritermes-group and Oriensubulitermes-group. The depauperate sites are on ultramafic-derived soils and have significantly higher concentrations of calcium, magnesium, nickel, chromium, cobalt. copper and zinc compared with the non-ultramafic soils at sites with typical assemblages. In addition. soil pH at the depauperate sites is significantly higher (>pH 5.4) compared with soils at the typical sites (which are all below pH 4.7). Possible mechanisms to explain the depauperate termite assemblages on ultramafic soils include metal toxicity. high pH disrupting gut, physiology. and microbial interactions with metals.

Subterranean termites (Reticulitermes grassei) were surveyed over successive seasons in a managed eucalyptus plantation in southeastern Portugal for 26 months. Termite activity in seven diameter categories of lying dead wood was investigated by a modified line intersection method (LIS). Each item sampled was inspected and assessed for termite attack and for general (i.e. fungal) decay status using standard protocols. Line intersection is quantitative to the extent that it can link foraging and decay parameters to woody biovolume. It was found that termites selected items with larger diameter, the observed trend showing an exponential character with greater termite attack as diameter increased. Attack by termites was positively associated with prior decay by fungi. A clear positive relationship was shown between rainfall and total woody biovolume containing live termites, underlining the importance of moisture for termite activity. Subterranean termites appeared to be important wood decomposers in the woodland studied, with an average of 30% of lying dead wood branches showing signs of termite attack.

This paper reviews the methods for the inventory of below-ground biotas in the humid tropics, to document the (hypothesized) loss of soil biodiversity associated with deforestation and agricultural intensification at forest margins. The biotas were grouped into eight categories, each of which corresponded to a major functional group considered important or essential to soil function. An accurate inventory of soil organisms can assist in ecosystem management and help sustain agricultural production. The advantages and disadvantages of transect-based and grid-based sampling methods are discussed, illustrated by published protocols ranging from the original "TSBF transect", through versions developed for the alternatives to Slash-and-Burn Project (ASB) to the final schemes (with variants) adopted by the Conservation and Sustainable Management of Below-ground Biodiversity Project (CSM-BGBD). Consideration is given to the place and importance of replication in below-ground biological sampling and it is argued that the new sampling protocols are inclusive, i.e. designed to sample all eight biotic groups in the same field exercise; spatially scaled, i.e. provide biodiversity data at site, locality, landscape and regional levels, and link the data to land use and land cover; and statistically robust, as shown by a partial randomization of plot locations for sampling.