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Sticker of Tree termite
Bug card No. 4418 of 4,939

Tree termite

Nasutitermes walkeri
Eats: WoodCockroaches and termitesForests and woods6 legs

The tree termite is a small Australian insect that lives in a big family. It builds its nest high up in a tree, sometimes as high as a six storey house. The soldiers of the family have round heads and long, straight jaws.

Lives in
Eastern Australia, in woods and scrubland near the coast and in the mountains
Length
5 to 7 mm (0.2 to 0.28 in)
the soldier termites
Top speed
about 0.05 km/h (0.03 mph)
On foot, estimate
Can it hurt you?
Harmless
Harmless to people. It can damage wooden houses by eating the timber, which is why people call it a pest.
What does it eat?
It eats wood. The termites walk down to the ground through tubes they build on the tree trunk and look for wood to munch.
For real!Photo of Tree termite
Picture by Robert Webster. CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

How big is it?

How long is it?

Tree termite about 7 mm long (0.28 in)A grain of rice about 6 mm (0.24 in)A toy building brick about 3.2 cm (1.3 in)
small enough to sit on your fingernailcould run across a dinner table in 72 seconds

How big is Tree termite compared to YOU?

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How fast is it?

cool stuff

Fun facts

1

A new nest starts in the top of a tree, in a spot where the wood has been hurt by fire or rot.

2

Later the family builds a bigger nest higher up, sometimes up to 20 metres above the ground.

3

The nest has a thin, papery outside and is quite fragile inside.

4

The termites build covered tubes down the tree trunk so they can walk to the ground safely.

5

Kingfishers often use tree termite nests as a home for raising their own chicks.

you asked

Most asked questions about Tree termite

?What does the tree termite eat?

Wood. It goes down to the ground through tubes on the tree trunk to find it.

?Where does the tree termite build its nest?

High up in trees, often ironbark and stringybark trees, sometimes 20 metres above the ground.

?Is the tree termite a pest?

Sometimes. It does not hurt people, but it can eat the wood in buildings.

For bug experts

Scientific name
Nasutitermes walkeri
Group
Cockroaches and termites
Family
Termitidae
Classification
Insecta > Blattodea > Termitidae
Lives on
Australia and Oceania

Where the facts come from

  1. Nasutitermes walkeri (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0): what it looks like, where it lives, what it eats, sizes and fun facts, retold in simple words.
  2. Picture by Robert Webster. CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons. The sticker of this bug is drawn from this picture.

If we got something wrong, sorry, we are bug fans, not a science journal. Tell us at [email protected] and we will fix it.

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