Termite queens' efficient antioxidant system may enable long life

Termite queens have an efficient antioxidant system which may underpin their ability to live longer than non-reproductive termites, according to a study published January 11, 2017 in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Eisuke ...

Wild chimpanzee mothers teach young to use tools

The first documented evidence of wild chimpanzee mothers teaching their offspring to use tools has been captured by video cameras set to record chimpanzee tool-using activity at termite mounds in the Nouabalé-Ndoki National ...

Finding the first fungus farmers

The development of farming was a key milestone in human history, but as a species we were quite late to the party. Insects got there first! One of the best documented examples happens in the termite world, where some species ...

Asexual succession strategy of termites

A study led by the Laboratory Evolutionary Biology and Ecology of the Université libre de Bruxelles shows that the humivorous French Guianan termite Cavitermes tuberosus routinely practice asexual queen succession (parthenogenesis).

100-mllion-year-old amber preserves oldest animal societies

Fighting ants, giant solider termites, and foraging worker ants recently discovered in 100-million-year-old amber provide direct evidence for advanced social behavior in ancient ants and termites—two groups that are immensely ...

What agriculture can learn from termites and fungi

Other living creatures were involved in agriculture way before humans. Termite species in Africa and Asia have been cultivating fungi for consumption for tens of millions of years. And they do it well as the harvests of a ...

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