Trivia! Termites are Attracted to Music!

Okay, I just thought that we needed some trivia today and so I re-posted this fun article from my Triond account. Now, fire!

You must be very curious and your eyebrows are crossed right now, I suppose, if termites are attracted to music. Well, yes, but let me explain further. I've done a little research and I hope that I answered in a very scientific way.

What are Termites?
Let me quote from the Wikipedia chuvaness:
Termites are a group of eusocial insects that, until recently, were classified at the taxonomic rankof order Isoptera, but are now accepted as the epifamily Termitoidae, of the cockroach order Blattodea. While termites are commonly known, especially in Australia, as "white ants," they are only distantly related to the ants.
Like ants, some bees, and wasps—which are all placed in the separate order Hymenoptera—termites divide labour among castes, produce overlapping generations and take care of young collectively. Termites mostly feed on dead plant material, generally in the form of wood, leaf litter, soil, or animal dung, and about 10 percent of the estimated 4,000 species (about 2,600 taxonomically known) are economically significant as pests that can cause serious structural damage to buildings, crops or plantation forests. Termites are major detritivores, particularly in thesubtropical and tropical regions, and their recycling of wood and other plant matter is of considerable ecological importance.

Okay, nosebleed to that explanation. Let's get some easy explanation in here. LOL!

Are termites attracted to music?

The answer is YES! However, here’s the deal.

Termites are not attracted to music per se, it’s the vibration that the music is making. The fact is, termites don’t hear nor see. Their behavior are based upon what we call pheromone.

I looked up for the meaning of this online and here’s what I got.

Pheromone is a chemical secreted by an animal, especially an insect that influences the behavior. In this light, termites are insects and they secrete pheromones.

Now, let’s highlight the word “influences the behavior” from the pheromone definition.

Since termites don’t hear or see, music influences their behavior from the vibration they feel which the music is making. They are affected by it by munching twice as fast as you play them loud music. Why? It’s because loud music creates thumping vibration. As long as it’s loud especially rock music, it makes termites eager to eat as long as they feel the thumping. You see, vibration can manipulate them into eating fast depending on the vibration that music creates.

You may wonder, what if you play them soft music such as ballad. What could it do to them?

Well, as long as music creates vibration, termites’ eating behavior is affected. Logic is, the faster the vibration they feel, the faster they eat.

Here are some other trivial facts I gathered from the web.

• Termites have been around since the time of the dinosaurs!
• Termite colonies eat non-stop, 24 hours a day, seven days a week!
• Termites have wings that they shed once they have found a good place to build a nest.
• Termites cause up to $2 billion in damage per year!
• All Termites are social insectsand raise their young as a group.
• The total weight of all of the termites in the world is more than the weight of all the humans in the world.
• So, double check your houses or your music room’s wall or furniture that is made of wood. You might take this fact into consideration to keep away termites from your home.