• Arxada
  • Bell Equipment
  • Foresta Timber & Board
  • FSC
  • Hin-Tech Manufacturing
  • John Deere
  • Khulani Timber Industries
  • LESH
  • Loadtech Load Cells
  • Ponsse
  • Rance Timbers
  • Sappi
  • SAWPA
  • SSA
  • UCL Sawmill
  • Wood-Mizer
  • Wuhlf

Post: Turns out termites love a warm day too!

The rate of termite wood decomposition increases more than 6.8 times with every 10°C increase in temperature, according to a new study by an international collaborative of scientists spanning six continents, which could have worrying consequences under a climate expected to become increasingly hot and dry.

While termites are generally known in Australia for the destruction they cause to property, in tropical forests they play a vital role in supporting decomposition. By breaking down rotting wood, they help release nutrients and carbon back into the soil and atmosphere. As a result, they have an important role in the carbon cycle.

The findings of this latest study clearly demonstrate the hotter the climate, the faster decaying wood can be decomposed with the support of termites, shedding light on how significant termites could be in the carbon cycle as the climate continues to change.

“It’s like if you go from, say, Boston to Miami, and if there’s a 10°C increase in temperature, termites will respond by increasing their decomposition rates sevenfold,” said Amy Zanne, lead author of the new paper and Biology Professor at the University of Miami.

For comparison, the same rise in temperature only increases the level of microbial wood decay two-fold.

In the world’s forests, fallen trees, branches and stumps continue to store carbon. As termites break down this timber, carbon atoms are released back into the environment. And while the positives of this process include the promotion of new plant growth, the flip side is that emitting carbon dioxide back into the atmosphere plays a role in increasing the planet’s temperature.

Professor Zanne collaborated on the study with a total of 108 co-authors across 133 locations worldwide, spanning temperate and tropical regions across the northern and southern hemispheres.

The research, which focused exclusively on radiata pine, saw each participating group dry out blocks of timber, which were then weighed and wrapped in a mesh that only microbes could slip through. Half of the samples then had holes cut into them, allowing easy access for termites to make their ways in and start to colonise.

After four years, the wood was unwrapped and reweighed, to compare the rates of decomposition. While the scientists expected, based on previous research, that microbes would be shown to have faster wood decay rates under warmer temperatures, they were surprised by how much more active termites were under increased heat.

“These were just astronomical numbers. They’re super sensitive to increases in temperature, meaning that with a small increase in temperature, they’re going to really jump how fast they’re cycling the carbon out of the wood,” Professor Zanne said.

The results of the study could help inform more accurate future climate modelling by taking into consideration the increased rate of release of stored carbon back into the atmosphere as a result of termite activity as the planet continues to warm.

Source: Forest & Wood Products Australia

This article is tagged in:
  • Afrequip
  • Alternative Structures Logo
  • Ezigro Seedlings
  • FABI
  • Husqvarna
  • ICFR
  • Kwamahlati Training Services
  • Logmech
  • Merensky
  • Mondi
  • Those who grow alone, die alone: why transformation is strategic for the MTO Group
  • NCT
  • Novelquip Forestry
  • Pangolin
  • Patula Risk
  • SAFCOL
  • Saw Specialists
  • Stihl
  • Sunshine Seedling Services
  • TWK
  • WoodBiz Africa
  • Afrequip
  • Alternative Structures Logo
  • Arxada
  • Bell Equipment
  • Ezigro Seedlings
  • FABI
  • Foresta Timber & Board
  • FSC
  • Hin-Tech Manufacturing
  • Husqvarna
  • ICFR
  • John Deere
  • Khulani Timber Industries
  • Kwamahlati Training Services
  • LESH
  • Loadtech Load Cells
  • Logmech
  • Merensky
  • Mondi
  • Those who grow alone, die alone: why transformation is strategic for the MTO Group
  • NCT
  • Novelquip Forestry
  • Pangolin
  • Patula Risk
  • Ponsse
  • Rance Timbers
  • SAFCOL
  • Sappi
  • Saw Specialists
  • SAWPA
  • SSA
  • Stihl
  • Sunshine Seedling Services
  • TWK
  • UCL Sawmill
  • Wood-Mizer
  • WoodBiz Africa
  • Wuhlf

Business Directory Registration Enquiry

We are proud to have been marketing businesses large and small for the past 25 years. As our online business directory is strictly industry related only businesses related to the forestry / timber value chain will be listed.
Your Name(Required)
Once you submit your details we will get in touch with you to advise on the way forward.
This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Subscribe To Our Newsletter

* indicates required

Turns out termites love a warm day too!

Contact Form

Name(Required)