Termites and the turnover of dead wood in an arid tropical environment

Buxton, R. D.

doi:10.1007/bf00540909

Cited by 80 publications

(72 citation statements)

References 9 publications

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“…Tanner (1980) estimated necromass production in a Jamaican forest to be 2.0 Mg ha -1 yr -1 using repeated samples over four years. Other estimates in dry tropical studies include 0.1 and 0.97 Mg ha -1 yr -1 conducted by Buxton (1981) and Collins (1981) respectively. Kira (1978) directly measured necromass production of 3.3 Mg ha -1 yr -1 in Pasoh Forest in western Malaysia.…”

Section: Production Of Necromassmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Each www.intechopen.com of these categories of organisms acts on wood differently and are important at different time in the temporal sequence of wood decay (Kaarik 1974). In the tropics, wood fragmentation is primarily caused by termites (Buxton 1981). This fragmentation occurs on highly decayed logs or parts of logs.…”

Section: Decomposition Of Necromassmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Measurement of decomposition through mass loss requires multiple measurements of necromass over time (Buxton 1981, Harmon et al 1995, Chambers et al 2000. This can only be done accurately if moisture content can be measured accurately and non-destructively.…”

Section: Decomposition Of Necromassmentioning

confidence: 99%

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A Review of Above Ground Necromass in Tropical Forests

Palace¹,

Keller²,

Hurtt³

et al. 2012

Tropical Forests

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Section: Production Of Necromassmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Decomposition Of Necromassmentioning

confidence: 99%

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A Review of Above Ground Necromass in Tropical Forests

Palace¹,

Keller²,

Hurtt³

et al. 2012

Tropical Forests

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“…The importance of these insects to wood decay has been discussed for many decades (Lee and Wood 1971, Wood 1976, Wood and Sands 1978, Longman and Jenik 1987 but relatively few efforts have been made to quantify their contributions to the process. A number of studies carried out primarily in Africa and Asia, however, suggest termites (especially the fungus-farming macrotermitines) may consume a large proportion of the dead wood produced annually (Abe 1978, 1980, Buxton 1981, Collins 1981, Schuurman 2005. Whereas termites are concentrated in warmer regions, beetles associated with dead and dying wood are distributed much more widely.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Contrasting effects of insect exclusion on wood loss in a temperate forest

2014

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Abstract. Experimental efforts to determine how insects influence terrestrial wood decomposition are few, especially in temperate regions. To address this need, a five-year exclusion study was conducted in northern Mississippi, U.S.A., to quantify insect contributions to wood decay using one-meter loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) bolts. The study included three treatments: (1) ''partially protected'' bolts that were placed on cypermethrin-treated soil to exclude subterranean termites (Isoptera: Rhinotermitidae: Reticulitermes spp.) while permitting colonization by beetles (Coleoptera) and other saproxylic taxa, (2) ''fully protected'' bolts that were placed on cypermethrin-treated soil and enclosed within screen cages to protect against all insects and (3) ''unprotected'' bolts that were not subjected to either exclusion treatment. The full insect community consumed approximately 15-20% of wood volume in unprotected bolts, about six times more than in partially protected bolts from which termites were excluded. There were no differences in specific gravity (based on initial wood volume) or mass loss among treatments, however. It is not clear whether these findings are due to an inhibition of microbial decomposers by insects (e.g., antimicrobial compounds secreted by termites or ants), a stimulatory effect of the exclusion treatments (e.g., cypermethrin stimulating fungal growth or cages favorably altering wood moisture), or some combination of both. When based on final water-displaced volume, specific gravity was significantly higher for unprotected bolts than for those fully protected, probably because termites selectively consume the least dense wood. By the end of the study, about 20% of the final dry weight of unprotected bolts consisted of termite-imported soil. Wood volume consumed and soil content decreased with distance from the ends of the bolts whereas water content exhibited the opposite pattern. We detected a significant negative relationship between water content and volume consumed by termites, possibly because water content decreases with increasing wood density and termites tend to avoid high density wood. While insects clearly consume large volumes of wood in southeastern U.S. forests, our results suggest they do not act to accelerate mass loss beyond what is achieved by microbial decomposers. More research is needed to confirm this, however-especially given the uncertainties inherent to exclusion studies.

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“…The symbiont termites have a great impact on plant litter decomposition and carbon cycling in tropical ecosystems (Wood et al 1989;Yamada et al 2005). For example, Buxton (1981) demonstrated that fungus-growing termites consumed 90% of the dry woody litter in an arid tropical area of Kenya.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Termitomyces Species from Tanzania, Their Cultural Properties and Unequalled Basidiospores

Tibuhwa

2012

JBLS

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Termitomyces R. Heim, a basidiomycete fungus lives in a mutualistic symbiosis with termites of the subfamily Macrotermitinae. This study explored the cultural properties and macro-micromorphological characters including scanning electron microscopic studies of ten Termitomyces species collected from different parts of Tanzania. Pure cultures were isolated from the asexual fruit bodies growing on or near the termite mound by tissue culture techniques in three different media Ghosh, Hagem Modess, and Modified Malt Extract Agar. The results showed that Termitomyces aurantiacus (Heim) Heim and Termitomyces striatus Heim have unsmooth basidiospore, the character noted for the first time in this genus, and the two species might be conspecific. In cultures, while micromorphological characters remain undistinguishable between taxa, Macromorphological characters distinguished them in colour of the mat, growth rate, mycelia elevation and advancing zones as well as the mat texture. T. saggitiformis (Kalchbr. & Cooke) D.A. Reid, T. titanicus Pegler & Piearce species are reported for the first time in the country record and key to the studied species is supplied. This study suggests the redefining of the genus by omitting the smooth or adding unsmooth basidiospore character in the genus circumscription.

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Termites and the turnover of dead wood in an arid tropical environment

Cited by 80 publications

References 9 publications

A Review of Above Ground Necromass in Tropical Forests

A Review of Above Ground Necromass in Tropical Forests

Contrasting effects of insect exclusion on wood loss in a temperate forest

Termitomyces Species from Tanzania, Their Cultural Properties and Unequalled Basidiospores

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