ABSTRACT
In termites, as in other social insects, pheromones are involved in probably all social activities from simple recognition between social partners to nest building. In termites which collect food at a distance from their nest, the discovery of food is not the achievement of scouts which singly explore the foraging field far from the nest. Exploration is a collective process: a collective trail or gallery grows from the nest or as an extension of an already preexisting network of trails or galleries. The first detailed descriptions of postflight behavior of termites were given by C. Fuller who reported that females produce pheromones during their calling attitude and tandem running. When soliciting mates, termites raise their abdomen exposing the sternal gland. In termites, defensive reactions are coordinated by various signals, either mechanical, such as vibratory movements and head banging or chemical, that is, trail and alarm pheromones.
