Do Termites Need a Queen to Survive?
WouterTermite colonies typically consist of thousands of workers, a few kings, and a queen. The king and queen mate to produce a family. Depending on the species, a king and queen may live for a decade or more.
When a new colony is established, the queen takes care of the first batch of eggs. The queen lays about 30,000 eggs a day. The queen produces an egg every three seconds. The number of eggs increases as the colony grows. In addition, the colony’s genetic code and reproductive system also increase, allowing the colony to multiply into 300,000 workers in five years.
During the mating season, the queen lays a large number of eggs. The eggs are laid in a protective capsule. This capsule keeps the queen and her eggs protected from other females.
The royal lady termite is a large, heavy termite that lies on its stomach. It is not able to walk, so workers move it around. As the royal lady termite ages, she will become too large to move.
As the termite colony grows, it will implement a caste system. The king and queen will be replaced by secondary reproductives. This allows the colony to reproduce quickly and replace the members who die.
During the mating season, an alate will leave the nest to find a mate. These reproductives are smaller than the primary queen and will not have wings. Some of these reproductives will mate with the secondary king. Eventually, these reproductives will develop into secondary queens, and they will help the primary queen produce eggs.
