The 12 Crucial Connections Between Termites and Tropical Rainforest Ecosystem Balance

10. Evolutionary Partners in Forest Dynamics

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Over millions of years, termites have co-evolved with tropical rainforests, forging complex interactions with many plant and animal species. Highly specialised adaptations and symbiotic interactions resulting from this extensive evolutionary history are crucial for the operation of forest ecosystems. Many plant species have developed features that enable them to flourish in termite-modified soils or even straight atop termite mounds, therefore benefiting from termite activities. Likewise, many animal species have evolved to make use of termite resources—either for food or for structural advantage. The complexity and variety of tropical forest ecosystems have much benefited from this co-evolutionary process. Termites have interesting and varied evolutionary alliances with other forest life. While some plant species have evolved seeds that are especially distributed by termites, others have created specialised root systems that can access and use the nutrient-rich environment of termite mounds. Growing only in their nests and supplying vital nutrients to the colony, some fungus have evolved obligatory partnerships with termites. Among animals, some species of ants have developed to coexist closely with termites either as predators or as nest parasites, resulting in intricate co-evolutionary arms races. Certain lizards and certain other vertebrates have evolved to use termite mounds either for thermoregulation or as nesting locations. Termites have highly specialised gut microbiomes that allow them to effectively break down cellulose, therefore extending these evolutionary links even to the microbial level. The complex network of co-evolved interactions around termites emphasises their basic significance in determining the course of evolution for tropical forest ecosystems. Maintaining the integrity and flexibility of these intricate ecosystems depends on an awareness of and preservation of these evolutionary relationships as these forests confront fresh pressures from human activity and climate change.