BIOLOGY 3DD3 Chapter Notes - Chapter 5: Termite, Mixotroph, Species Richness
14 Nov 2016
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Most of african savanna is hard and dry, termites spend centuries creating mounds. By aerating surrounding soil more water can penetrate and highly productive and fertile patches are created. Acacia trees grow 60% more shoots near these mounds and they are 2x as likely to bear fruit when growing in these areas. Termites indirectly enhance plant and animal productivity near their mounds. Uniform spatial pattern of mounds enhances productivity across whole landscape. Bring plant material to their nests providing important nutrients like nitrogen. Bacteria in termite guts fixes free nitrogen which also helps. Termites concentrate nutrients and water, create small scale structure in the savanna ecosystem. The ants benefit from the food provided to them. Acacia benefits from ants attacking insect and mammalian herbivores. Trees near termite mounds are more likely to bear fruit. A certain type of ant lives in these older trees near mounds.
