Termite Colony Observations!

During our unit of studying termites and how they live and function, we watched some of our own termites build a colony as we observed them week to week.

In our jar, we kept:
120 grams of silica sand
18 ml of water
1 small piece of Douglas Fir

8/18/10 Initial observation: They all look similar in size, my estimation of the population would be 45 termites; the majority of them seem to be eating.

8/23/10 Second observation: They haven't eaten much wood, but they have created homes and trails/routine walkways.

8/30/10 Third Observation: They have eaten through the knot in the wood chip, and have continued to make their trails-few have died.

The termites reacted rather well after their homes were upturned by human interaction. They kept working hard to use make trails.
I thought this unit was prettty cool; some of it was gross, but it was all very informing and useful to our everyday lives. My least favorite part was killing the little termite. My favorite part was making the big glittery poster full of termite facts.



Termite Feeding and Symbiotic Protozoa

 Termites have a special relationship with protozoa. When protozoa lives inside a termite, they receieve shelter and food (cellulose from the eaten wood). Acetate is one of the many things produced and release by the protozoa. In return, the termite absorbs the Acetate and uses it as their energy source to do all their daily jobs. As a result, the protozoa and termite make a cycle together, creating a symbiotic relationship.

 In This Photo: D. Richwine and Tim the Termite

Photo Credit: H. Hume-Kaina

"Tim's better features are being slowly ripped through his

abdomen while keeping a tight grip on his head!"

In This Photo: D. Richwine & Tim the Termite (sad death)

Photo Credit: H. Hume-Kaina

"Tim is being smushed onto a slide"

To try this lab on your own, follow these instructions:

1. place one pair of forceps on the termite's head.

2. place the other pair of forceps on the termite's abdomen (see above pictures)

3. gently pull on the very end of the abodomen to separate guts from body

4. place guts on a slide (see above pictures)

5. place slide under microscope and check out your guts

6. analyze or draw your results!

I found this lab to be slightly cruel at first, (thats why I didn't kill the termite). After seeing the protozoa in the microscope and comparing them to the pictures of  the three different types, I thought it was pretty cool to see they looked just like they should. Our slide turned out really well and we could see all three different types of protozoa which was also pretty cool.

In This Photo: Protozoa in Tim the Termite's guts (up close!)

Photo Credit: H. Hume-Kaina

"View of Tim's guts once under a microscope"



"Symbiotic relationships include those associations in which one organism lives on another (ectosymbiosis), or where one partner lives inside the other (endosymbiosis). Symbiotic relationships may be either obligate, i.e., necessary for the survival of at least one of the organisms involved, or facultative, where the relationship is beneficial but not essential for survival of the organisms." -Wikipedia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Symbiosis

The Amazing Line Transect

The Transect Line is used to sample different things. For examle, Allie and I sampled pipipi at the Keawakapu tide pools.

How to use a Line Transect:
1. open metal latch.
2. pull measuring tape from it's casing.
3. sample your item/measure your item.
4. use the metal latch to retract the measuring tape.