Termites are so common that if you blurt out the word "termite!" the image of many tiny, pale bodies eating away at a house pops right into anyones mind. What most people seem to lack the knowledge of is actually how their bodies and minds work along with how to effectively keep them away from your home. In my science class we learned all about termites. Not only did we study the basic termite facts but we went into depth and also got the opportunity to observe them in small, clear jars.
To start off, we set up a clear plastic jar on August 18th 2010. Laying in a thick layer at the bottom of the jar was silica sand mixed with nineteen milliliters of water and a small block of douglas fur wood. Once we placed the termites inside we put the lid on the jar. We did not seal the jar shut all the way because we needed to let the air pass in and out of the jar so that the termites could live. In order to keep a good eye on the termites we kept an observation log and wrote down everything we saw that either changed or stayed the same with them in their new habitat. We did this once a week for a few weeks.
My predictions were this:
"I predict that the sand will be everywhere, meaning it will have holes dug in it and mixed up all over the place. All the moisture will be low and the wood will look like it has tiny chunks out of it acting as clear evidence that the termites were feating on it. Their will be more termites roaming around and maybe some dead termites as well."
My observations:
August 23, 2010
"I observed that the termites have made a maze like trail in the damp sand. None of the wood seems to be eaten or different in any way. The termites are actively moving from the bottom of the jar/sand to above the sand. Also there seems to be some dead termites and some new ones."
August 30, 2010
"There seems to be less termites in the jar than last time. They seemed to have created a more defined trail or pathway at the bottom of the jar/sand, and some of the wood has been eaten. The sand still looks damp and their is a hole through the sand coming out at the top."
September 8, 2010
"I can see a little amount of termites, not many though. They look pretty big compared to the last observation. The sand looks damp and there are light brown spots in the sand. It also looks like someone messed or shook the jar up."
October 13, 2010
(The time from the last observation and this one is a while because of the fall break)
"All the substrate (sand) is messed up and all over the place. It is in crumbles and looking very damp. The dampness could just be darker in color though. The wood looks like it has been eaten on the edges and also looks very dark or damp. All of the termites in the jar look dead but way bigger now than they were before. Now you can see the detail in their bodies and heads."
This unit was an interesting one to go through. At first I thought it was going to be really boring and easy but once we got into it I realized how detailed it really is. There is more to it than just insects who find houses a fun thing to snack on and to get rid of them just spray your house. At the end of this unit, even though it was a long one, I found it really interesting and important to learn about. My least favorite part about it was probably just how long it took to complete everything for this unit. My favorite part would probably have to be when we studied the termites guts under the microscope. I did not like everything that led up to the watching of the protozoa partly because my group did not succeed, but it was so awesome to look at the protozoa squirming inside the termite gut. It was really memorable and fun to see!
