Termite Tale

When I was in Sungai Petani, staying at Cinta Sayang Resort not too long ago, there were many insects at night which were attracted to the lighted lamps both in my room and everywhere. The winged insects were as I thought, just some kind of insects; so was I surprised indeed when my room mate told me that they were termites. The termite life cycle indicates three castes, the reproductives, the soldiers and the workers. The reproductives can be further divided into alates, de-alates, Queen and King and neotenics. The alates are the young winged reproductives of both sexes. From time to time about 100 to 1000 of these alates will leave the colony for a mating and colonising flight. The de-alates are the alates that cast their wings after the colonising flight and successively turn into queens and kings. I suppose what I saw in Cinta Sayang Resort then were the alates and de-alates. I suppose life is continually a learning experience!

Light that attracts...
De-alates... The wings that had been cast off...