Editing Termite (section)

===Communication===
[[File:Termites (Nasutitermes sp.) (8439859723).jpg |thumbnail |Hordes of ''Nasutitermes'' on a march for food, following and leaving trail pheromones]]
Most termites are blind, so communication primarily occurs through chemical, mechanical and pheromonal cues.<ref name=Leonardo>{{cite journal |last1=Costa-Leonardo |first1=A.M. |last2=Haifig |first2=I. |title=Pheromones and exocrine glands in Isoptera |journal=Vitamins and Hormones |date=2010 |volume=83 |pages=521–549 |doi=10.1016/S0083-6729(10)83021-3 |pmid=20831960 |isbn=9780123815163}}</ref><ref name=commu>{{cite book |last1=Costa-Leonardo |first1=A.M. |last2=Haifig |first2=I. |title=''Termite communication during different behavioral activities'' in Biocommunication of Animals |date=2013 |pages=161–190 |doi=10.1007/978-94-007-7414-8_10 |publisher=Springer Netherlands |isbn=978-94-007-7413-1}}</ref> These methods of communication are used in a variety of activities, including foraging, locating reproductives, construction of nests, recognition of nestmates, nuptial flight, locating and fighting enemies, and defending the nests.<ref name=Leonardo/><ref name=commu/> The most common way of communicating is through antennation.<ref name=commu/> A number of pheromones are known, including contact pheromones (which are transmitted when workers are engaged in trophallaxis or grooming) and [[Pheromone#Alarm |alarm]], [[Trail pheromone |trail]] and [[sex pheromone]]s. The alarm pheromone and other defensive chemicals are secreted from the frontal gland. Trail pheromones are secreted from the sternal gland, and sex pheromones derive from two glandular sources: the sternal and tergal glands.<ref name=Leonardo/> When termites go out to look for food, they forage in columns along the ground through vegetation. A trail can be identified by the faecal deposits or runways that are covered by objects. Workers leave pheromones on these trails, which are detected by other nestmates through olfactory receptors.<ref name=Britannica/> Termites can also communicate through mechanical cues, vibrations, and physical contact.<ref name=Britannica>{{cite encyclopedia |last1=Krishna |first1=K. |title=Termite |url=http://www.britannica.com/animal/termite |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica |access-date=11 September 2015}}</ref><ref name=commu/> These signals are frequently used for alarm communication or for evaluating a food source.<ref name=commu/><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Evans |first1=T.A. |last2=Inta |first2=R. |last3=Lai |first3=J.C.S. |last4=Lenz |first4=M. |title=Foraging vibration signals attract foragers and identify food size in the drywood termite, ''Cryptotermes secundus'' |journal=Insectes Sociaux |date=2007 |volume=54 |issue=4 |pages=374–382 |doi=10.1007/s00040-007-0958-1 |s2cid=40214049}}</ref>

When termites construct their nests, they use predominantly indirect communication. No single termite would be in charge of any particular construction project. Individual termites react rather than think, but at a group level, they exhibit a sort of collective cognition. Specific structures or other objects such as pellets of soil or pillars cause termites to start building. The termite adds these objects onto existing structures, and such behaviour encourages building behaviour in other workers. The result is a self-organised process whereby the information that directs termite activity results from changes in the environment rather than from direct contact among individuals.<ref name=commu/>

Termites can distinguish nestmates and non-nestmates through chemical communication and gut symbionts: chemicals consisting of hydrocarbons released from the cuticle allow the recognition of alien termite species.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Costa-Leonardo |first1=A.M. |last2=Casarin |first2=F.E. |last3=Lima |first3=J.T. |title=Chemical communication in isoptera |journal=Neotropical Entomology |date=2009 |volume=38 |issue=1 |pages=747–52 |doi=10.1590/S1519-566X2009000100001 |pmid=19347093 |doi-access=free |hdl=11449/19749 |hdl-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Richard |first1=F.-J. |last2=Hunt |first2=J.H. |title=Intracolony chemical communication in social insects |journal=Insectes Sociaux |date=2013 |volume=60 |issue=3 |pages=275–291 |doi=10.1007/s00040-013-0306-6 |s2cid=8108234 |url=http://www4.ncsu.edu/~jhhunt/Richard%20and%20Hunt.pdf |access-date=2015-10-08 |archive-date=2016-03-04 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304114501/http://www4.ncsu.edu/~jhhunt/Richard%20and%20Hunt.pdf |url-status=dead}}</ref> Each colony has its own distinct odour. This odour is a result of genetic and environmental factors such as the termites' diet and the composition of the bacteria within the termites' intestines.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Dronnet |first1=S. |last2=Lohou |first2=C. |last3=Christides |first3=J.P. |last4=Bagnères |first4=A.G. |title=Cuticular hydrocarbon composition reflects genetic relationship among colonies of the introduced termite ''Reticulitermes santonensis'' Feytaud |journal=Journal of Chemical Ecology |date=2006 |volume=32 |issue=5 |pages=1027–1042 |doi=10.1007/s10886-006-9043-x |pmid=16739021 |bibcode=2006JCEco..32.1027D |s2cid=23956394}}</ref>