Editing Termite (section)

===Shelter tubes===
[[File:Termite-nest-tunnels.jpg|thumb|upright|alt=Photo taken upwards from ground level of shelter tubes going up the shaded side of a tree. Where the main trunk of the tree divides into separate major branches, the shelter tube also branches. Although the nests are not visible in this photo, the branches of the shelter tube presumably lead up to polycalic sister colonies of the arboreal termites that built these tubes.|Nasutiterminae shelter tubes on a tree trunk provide cover for the trail from nest to forest floor.]]

Termites construct shelter tubes, also known as earthen tubes or mud tubes, that start from the ground. These shelter tubes can be found on walls and other structures.<ref name=term1996>{{cite book |last1=Hadlington |first1=P. |title=Australian Termites and Other Common Timber Pests |date=1996 |publisher=New South Wales University Press |location=Kensington, NSW, Australia |isbn=978-0-86840-399-1|pages=28–30 |edition=2nd}}</ref> Constructed by termites during the night, a time of higher humidity, these tubes provide protection to termites from potential predators, especially ants.<ref name=bolinas>{{cite book|last1=Kahn|first1=L.|last2=Easton|first2=B.|title=Shelter II|date=2010|publisher=Shelter Publications|location=Bolinas, California|isbn=978-0-936070-49-0|page=198}}</ref> Shelter tubes also provide high humidity and darkness and allow workers to collect food sources that cannot be accessed in any other way.<ref name=term1996/> These passageways are made from soil and faeces and are normally brown in colour. The size of these shelter tubes depends on the number of food sources that are available. They range from less than 1&nbsp;cm to several cm in width, but may be dozens of metres in length.<ref name=bolinas/>