Comparative studies on two Pakistani Subterranean termites (Isoptera: Rhinotermitidae, Termitidae) for natural resistance and feeding preferences in laboratory and field trials.

摘要

Natural resistance and feeding preferences of two termite species, Coptotermes heimi and Microcerotermes championi, for ten species of woods commonly used in wood work and furniture in Pakistan were tested in the laboratory as well as in the field. Both choice and no-choice laboratory and field experiments were conducted to test the natural resistance of timbers commonly used in Pakistan. For M. championi, in no-choice laboratory and field tests, Abies pindrow was found to be most resistant and Populus euramericana was least resistant. In choice feeding tests, both in the laboratory and field, M. championi were offered a combination of two woods, but M. championi showed the same feeding preference as in no-choice feeding tests. For C. heimi, the feeding preferences and wood consumption rate was different from that of M. championi. Tectona grandis was found to be least preferred for C. heimi and P. euramericana was the most preferred. When wood consumption rate of P. euramericana was compared, C. heimi consumed more P. euramericana than M. championi. The impacts of drying temperature (60 degrees C, 70 degrees C, 80 degrees C, 90 degrees C and 100 degrees C) on wood specimens were also studied and it was seen that the amount of wood consumed increased with the increase in temperature. At the end of the experiment, for M. championi, the wood specimens were arranged in the following descending order of preference: Populus euramericana > Azadirachta indica > Cedrus deodara > Pinus roxburghii > Morus alba > Tectona grandis > Mangifera indica > Acacia arabica > Thuja occidentalis > Abies pindrow. The ranking of the resistance of the ten woods against C. heimi (Wasmann) were Populus euramericana > Mangifera indica > Abies pindrow > Pinus wallichiana > Morus alba > Dalbergia sissoo > Acacia nilotica > Azadirachta indica > Cedrus deodara > Tectona grandis. Field studies on wood consumption rate of 10 wood species by two termite species, C. heimi and M. championi, confirmed the findings from laboratory evaluation.