Primary elements of age polyethism in workers from the central nest of Coptotermes formosanus Shiraki (Isoptera: Rhinotermitidae)

The Formosan subterranean termite Coptotermes formosanus Shiraki is a major structural pest with significant economic importance. As social insects, individuals within a colony perform different tasks according to their caste. In lower termites, workers go through stationary molt which implies that in a colony, there is an overlap of generations with workers of different ages. While it was previously shown that older workers took part in the foraging activity, it is unknown if there is another layer of task division among workers in the central nest where the queen, king and brood are located. We here investigated if termites of different ages would perform age-dependent behaviors in the central nest. Our results indicated that older workers were proportionally more involved in the flow of food within the group, while younger workers are move involved with allogrooming activities. In addition, older workers were primarily in charge of the sanitation of the nest, as they collected final fecal waste from individuals and used it for nest construction. Our observation provided primary elements of age polyethism of workers in the central nest of a lower termite.