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Termite colonies are protected by the physical structure of the nest as well as by an elaborate system of recognition against intruders. Nevertheless, the defensive system does not always prevent colonization of termite nests by other species. Here, we analyzed whether the host-inquiline cohabitation could occur through mechanisms related to the specificity of chemical cue acquisition by inquilines or through avoidance, testing the hypotheses that (i) there is lower survival and greater aggressiveness between host and inquiline coming from different nests than between those from the same nest; (ii) there is lower survival between host and inquiline coming from the nests of different locals than between those species from the same local; and (ii) intestinal or body cues may be repellent for inquilines or hosts. Manipulative bioassays were conducted pairing hosts and inquilines coming from the same and different nests. Our results showed that although there was greater mortality of the host and inquiline in close contact, they showed mutual recognition of cues without displaying any aggressive behavior. The host was attracted by inquiline body cues and the inquiline was attracted by the host’s intestinal and body cues. Hosts did not distinguish inquilines from different nests in the same locality; however, inquilines seemed to be more habituated to their own host nests than to other nests. Our results suggest that local and genetic factors may be related to cues involved in this coexistence. Therefore, under natural conditions, we hypothesized that mechanisms, such as segregation and camouflaging, could maintain cohabitation.

Nests of the termite Constrictotermes sp. can be cohabited by obligatory inquilines Inquilinitermes sp. Recent studies have shown that inquilines establish themselves in mature nests, possibly during the nidification transition phase of the colony (e.g., from the epigeal to the arboreal habit). It is believed that cohabitation is maintained through spatial segregation of the cohabitants since the inquilines aggregate in the central nest region. Here, we described the cohabitation between Inquilinitermes microceus (Silvestri) and a Constrictotermes species in Sergipe, Northeast Brazil. We compared the cohabitation observed in distinct regions considering hypotheses related to the entry and maintenance of the inquiline in the nests. All Constrictotermes sp. nests found in this region are epigeal, unlike already reported in other studies. Approximately 45% of the nests analyzed were associated with I. microcerus, and cohabitation seemed to be dependent on nest size. The entrance of the inquiline was not related to changes in the nidification habit from soil to trees, as suggested in other studies. In addition, inquilines were not associated with and segregated into the dark walls in the central part of the nest. The cohabitation observed here could involve mechanisms which are distinct from the mechanisms reported in other regions.