Editing Termite (section)

===Mounds<!--"termite mounds" in Ant-hill article links here -->===
{{See also|Mound-building termites}}
{{Commons category|Termite mounds}}
Nests are considered mounds if they protrude from the earth's surface.{{sfn|Bignell|Roisin|Lo|2010|p=21}} A mound provides termites the same protection as a nest but is stronger.{{sfn|Bignell|Roisin|Lo|2010|p=22}} Mounds located in areas with torrential and continuous rainfall are at risk of mound erosion due to their clay-rich construction. Those made from carton can provide protection from the rain, and in fact can withstand high precipitation.{{sfn|Bignell|Roisin|Lo|2010|p=21}} Certain areas in mounds are used as strong points in case of a breach. For example, ''[[Cubitermes]]'' colonies build narrow tunnels used as strong points, as the diameter of the tunnels is small enough for soldiers to block.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Perna|first1=A.|last2=Jost|first2=C.|last3=Couturier|first3=E.|last4=Valverde|first4=S.|last5=Douady|first5=S.|last6=Theraulaz|first6=G.|title=The structure of gallery networks in the nests of termite ''Cubitermes'' spp. revealed by X-ray tomography.|journal=Die Naturwissenschaften|date=2008|volume=95|issue=9|pages=877–884|doi=10.1007/s00114-008-0388-6|pmid=18493731|bibcode = 2008NW.....95..877P |s2cid=15326313}}</ref> A highly protected chamber, known as the "queen's cell", houses the queen and king and is used as a last line of defence.{{sfn|Bignell|Roisin|Lo|2010|p=22}}

Species in the genus ''Macrotermes'' arguably build the most complex structures in the insect world, constructing enormous mounds.{{sfn|Bignell|Roisin|Lo|2010|p=21}} These mounds are among the largest in the world, reaching a height of 8 to 9 metres (26 to 29 feet), and consist of chimneys, pinnacles and ridges.<ref name=Britannica/> Another termite species, ''[[Amitermes meridionalis]]'', can build nests 3&nbsp;to 4&nbsp;metres (9&nbsp;to 13 feet) high and 2.5 metres (8&nbsp;feet) wide. The tallest mound ever recorded was 12.8 metres (42&nbsp;ft) long found in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Guinness World Records 2014|last=Glenday|first=Craig|year=2014|isbn=978-1-908843-15-9|pages=[https://archive.org/details/guinnessworldrec0000unse_r3e7/page/33 33]|publisher=Guinness World Records Limited |url=https://archive.org/details/guinnessworldrec0000unse_r3e7/page/33}}</ref>

The sculptured mounds sometimes have elaborate and distinctive forms, such as those of the compass termite (''Amitermes meridionalis'' and ''A. laurensis''), which builds tall, wedge-shaped mounds with the long axis oriented approximately north–south, which gives them their common name.<ref name=jacklyn1991>{{cite journal |last1=Jacklyn |first1=P. |title=Evidence for Adaptive Variation in the Orientation of ''Amitermes'' (Isoptera, Termitinae) Mounds From Northern Australia |journal=Australian Journal of Zoology |date=1991 |volume=39 |issue=5 |pages=569 |doi=10.1071/ZO9910569}}</ref><ref name=jacklyn2002>{{cite journal |last1=Jacklyn |first1=P.M. |last2=Munro |first2=U. |title=Evidence for the use of magnetic cues in mound construction by the termite ''Amitermes meridionalis'' (Isoptera : Termitinae) |journal=Australian Journal of Zoology |date=2002 |volume=50 |issue=4 |pages=357 |doi=10.1071/ZO01061}}</ref> This orientation has been experimentally shown to assist [[thermoregulation]]. The north–south orientation causes the internal temperature of a mound to increase rapidly during the morning while avoiding overheating from the midday sun. The temperature then remains at a plateau for the rest of the day until the evening.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Grigg |first1=G.C. |title=Some Consequences of the Shape and Orientation of 'magnetic' Termite Mounds |journal=Australian Journal of Zoology |date=1973 |volume=21 |issue=2 |pages=231–237 |doi=10.1071/ZO9730231|url=http://espace.library.uq.edu.au/view/UQ:10143/gg_ajz_21_73.pdf }}</ref>

<gallery widths="200px" class="center">
<!-- Please note that punctuation in the alt text is intended to assist recitation by a screen reader and is not necessarily intended to be grammatical. Please use a screen reader to validate any changes in alt text. -->
File:RayNorris termite cathedral mounds.jpg|alt=. These termite mounds have a base shaped like the base of a tree, about two meters wide and a meter high. From this base, rounded chimneys from half a meter to a meter in diameter rise to a total height of about four or five meters. The chimneys are fused together with ridges between, and terminate in rounded pinnacles at the top.|[[Cathedral termite|Cathedral mound]]s in the [[Northern Territory]], [[Australia]]
File:Termite Magnetic DSC03613.jpg|alt=. Hundreds of compass termite mounds are visible in this photo of a field in northern Australia. The chisel-shaped mounds range from several centimeters to several meters in height.|Mounds of "compass" or "magnetic" termites (''Amitermes'') oriented north–south, thereby avoiding mid-day heat
File:Termitenhuegel.jpg|alt=. This termite mound is about three meters in height and four meters across. The mound chimneys are about a meter in diameter and fuse together to form a rounded top.|Termite mound in [[Queensland]], Australia
File:Termites in a mound.jpg|alt=. The photographer has broken off a piece of a mound to show the mound's interior. Dozens of tunnels have been exposed, and hundreds of soldiers have emerged to guard the breech in the wall.|Termites in a mound, [[Analamazoatra Reserve]], [[Madagascar]]
<!--File:Termite_mound_with_comparison.jpg|Humans and trees for size comparison-->
File:Termitenhügel Namibia.jpg|Termite mound in [[Namibia]]
</gallery>