These structures - Termitaria - are constructed by the fungus-grower termites Macrotermes mossambicus. Fungus gardens are situated near the base of the termitary.
Termites are often erroneously referred to as 'white ants' - termites are not true ants.
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A pic to show just how huge these mounds can be - they do get taller than this.
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A termitary built around the base of a tree, it doesn't seem to affect the tree at all.
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The mounds are most distinctive in the rising or setting sun - this pic was taken on a cloudy day.
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They come in all shapes and sizes, the color being dependent on the soil they're built on.
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The hole in this one was probably made by an Antbear or 'Aardvark' hunting for food - I wonder who lives there now?
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In his book The Soul Of The White Ant, Eugene Marais puts forward the theory that a termitary is a separate composite animal.
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This one has been worn smooth - it's been used by Elephant and/or Rhino as a scratching post.
Here's a link to an earlier post I did on the yummy giant mushroom found on these termitarium during summer: Omahova
References:
Amy Schoeman - Notes On Nature.
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We have termites 'white ants' here in France but they do not appear to make mounds like in S.A. or I have certainly never seen them anyway. Perhaps they just live underground. If my French was better maybe I could find out:-( Those mushrooms are huge. Diane
ReplyDeleteForgot to add that I am looking forward to the busride with Lynda, Joyful et al. I do buy a lottery ticket and if I win I will get the bus for you:-) Diane
ReplyDeleteHehehe ... thanks Diane ... are there any local witchdoctors there who can throw the bones and give you some numbers? ... here's hoping you win a bus or six ...
ReplyDeleteYeah, there are many different types of termite, some gather grass and can strip a field bare and others, the really pesky type tend to eat wood ...
I am curious... what do you do in namibia??? The termite hills are quite something... but ugh what hideous bugs!
ReplyDeleteInteresting that what we call termites here in the US eat our houses instead of building their own! Completely different critters.--Inger
ReplyDeleteseems strange that animals would scratch themselves on a termite mound. I would think the termites they pickup would make them itch more.
ReplyDeletegreat pics
Thanks for your visit an comment lostpastremembered - yeah, termites are very destructive ...
ReplyDeleteI'm an ex-miner - I spend much of my time in the desert and a lot of time building a house ... if you're interested you can see some pics a few posts back ...
Hey Inger - yeah, we also get the wood-eating termites here, they're a pest ... sometimes they build their nests close to my bore hole and when they fall in I get termites in my water for a few days ...
ReplyDeleteHowzit lisleman - no, they don't pick up any termites by scratching themselves on the mounds and besides, with their thick skins I think that there are not many insects that bug jumbos or rhinos ...
ReplyDeleteIt so happens that I am having a termite problem at my house. Those termite mounds look awesome. I wonder if I could get my termites to re-locate to those skyscraper mounds.
ReplyDeleteHehe lgsquirrel - I think that your termites will be reluctant to relocate when they hear that we have anteaters here - the Aardvark ...
ReplyDeleteThe termites in France eat wood the same as the SA ones and are a huge problem here. When buying a house it HAS to be checked and confirmed termite free. Diane
ReplyDeleteYeah, it seems like the house-eating type are a big problem in Europe and the USA - I wonder if, together with cockroaches, they'll someday inherit the Earth ...
ReplyDeleteHi,why do they build these huge mounds, they must be bound together pretty strongly to withstand something like a rhino scratching against it.Do they build one then leave or are they permanen. I like the one under the tree that the aarvark made a hole in. It looks very des res with overhanging shade!
ReplyDeleteThe previous post about the desert is great, I have never seen a desert of any description other than in films and I always have a sneaky suspicion it is done on a back lot in some studio!One of the mountains looks very like photos I have seen of Ayers Rock in Australia
Hey Peggy - yeah, i don't know why they build those castles but they have a whole social structure, workers, soldiers etc ... with one queen who can produce 8,000 to 1000 eggs per day - just after the first good rains fall many fly out and go on to mate and establish new termitaries - when they fly out, humans collect them and fry an eat them, they're quite a delicacy here ... I've eaten but can't say I'm very fond of them - a bit too rich for my taste ...
ReplyDeleteWow, these architects sure do build some striking mounds! Love the pics. Termites are destructive here and they can eat away houses so we have the pest control guys who check on their activity now and again.
ReplyDeleteAnother fascinating post and very informative comments as usual. If the "castles" (excellent word BTW) act as scratching posts, presumably they are rather tough to offer resistance to the big critters? So, how long do they last for when eventually abandoned?
ReplyDeletegg
Thanks Keats - it seems that termites are a big problem all across the world, especially the wood-eating ones that damage houses ...
ReplyDeleteThanks gg - the termataria are very tough, I think the sand particles are stuck together with saliva by the termites - I don't know how long they last, probably many years ...
ReplyDeleteThe Namibian Roads Authority employs special teams of workers to demolish them along the verges of the main roads from time-to-time ... I've got pics somewhere ...
So, termite saliva is natures cement! I assume they have large voids underground level and that's why the roadside ones are destroyed, to stop road collapse? Or to avoid injury when drivers swerve into them saying "MOG, WTF is that?"
ReplyDeleteHahaha gg ... yeah, they have large underground complexes ...
ReplyDeleteWhy do they remove them from the road verges? I don't know, but I suspect that it may be an employment-creating initiative in a country with a high unemployment rate.
If you're interested in the subject you might find the Eugene Marais 'Soul of the White Ant' link in the post interesting - the man was a brilliant eccentric who committed hari-kiri at a very young age ...
Will chase down the reference later, banished outside to clean windows as they are so gross even I give in, TTFN!
ReplyDeletewow, I've seen these before but not so many on one post! :)
ReplyDeleteGreat shots!
Have a nice weekend!
ps. thanks for Name/URL option to leave a comment!
Hehe BLOGitse - in some places in Namibia there are so many along the road and I have to really struggle against the temptation to photograph all the nice ones ... otherwise I'd never reach my destination ...
ReplyDeleteYou have a great weekend too ...
What a lovely cross section of termite mounds you have photographed - all those different shapes & colours, and the one built around the base of the tree is amazing, don't think I've ever seen that before.
ReplyDeleteTermite mounds are also really handy if you're a woman travelling on long, desolate stretches of bush road as they provide the perfect cover (depending on how wide your bum is, of course lol) if you need to make a quick toilet stop !
Hahaha Lynda ... yes, I've never thought about about them in that light before ... how am I ever going to pass a Termite mound again without checking to see if there's a lady hiding behind them? ... :)
ReplyDeleteDo you get them in Tanzania too?
There must be some mighty big backsides in Nam if none of them work?
ReplyDeleteHehe gg there are, believe me ... though I've never seen any behind a mound ... :)
ReplyDeleteHehe - yes, we do get them here in Tz & they are rather stratigically positioned every couple of hours or so along desolate stretches of road ;) I did a blog post on them ages ago but can't seem to find it now ? Oh, well ! (My photo/s of course not as professional as yours !)
ReplyDeleteThanks Lynda - professionals would probably call my pics 'rubbish' ... anyway, to me it's just about capturing an image, which can be done with any camera ...
ReplyDeleteI assume that you don't get the giant mushrooms growing on the termite mountains there ...
What an interesting blog! The first time I saw those termite mountains was in BElize. I could hardly believe it.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your visit and comment Susan ... I hope you'll stop by again sometime ...
ReplyDeleteOnce again you've taken some spectacular photos and who would've "thunk it" given the subject matter. Nam sure has some interesting subjects to photograph. Thanks for sharing them so well.
ReplyDeleteThank you Penny - yeah, I think almost anything could be interesting ...
ReplyDelete