Reproductive Termites – Which Termites reproduce, and how?

Many common pests can reproduce incredibly fast. Termites are no exception – but their reproduction works quite differently than many other insects.

Only the Queen of a termite colony is able to reproduce and lay eggs. However, there can be secondary queens in a termite colony.

The workers and soldiers are all not sexually developed and will not mate or lay eggs. It’s actually quite interesting how it all works:

How do Termites reproduce?

To understand how termites reproduce, we have to start a the beginning. A colony is founded by two winged termites, called Alates, one male and one female. They lose their wings, dig into wood, and create a safe place to start a colony.

The female, now the Queen of the colony, starts reproducing with her king and laying eggs. Few at first, but as the colony grows, she lays more and more eggs every day.

The sole purpose of the Queen termite is to reproduce and lay eggs to grow the colony. That’s why she’s also called the primary reproductive.

Secondary Reproductives

Once the colony is large enough, the queen lets a few eggs turn into secondary reproductives, rather than workers or soldiers. These secondary reproductive aren’t queens, but called brachypterous neotenic and apterous neotenic reproductive.

These secondary reproductives are also created asexually, without the king (or any other termite) being part of the process. This makes sure that there is no genetic overlap between these secondary reproductives and the king. This is important to maintain genetic diversity, as the king will also mate with them. (source study)

Can all Termites reproduce?

No, most termites cannot and will never reproduce. In young colonies, the queen and king are the only termites capable of reproducing – the workers and soldiers, are not sexually developed. Secondary reproductive termites are only grown once the colony is already established and stable.

Who mates with the termite queen?

Only the king, the co-founder of the colony, mates with the queen. Regular termites – workers and soldiers – cannot reproduce.

Can termite queens reproduce without the king?

You might expect sex to be necessary, but a new study has shown termites can actually survive in all-female colonies and still reproduce without a king or any other insemination. 

Can termite colonies survive without their queen?

The queen is the center of the colony and necessary for its survival – however, once secondary reproductives have been established, a colony can survive without a queen. Secondary reproductive termites can hatch a new queen once the original queen dies or disappears. This works, because the queen prevents any new queens from being born or developed with a special pheromone – a mechanism that stops when the queen disappears.

Can one termite multiply?

Unless that one termite is the queen, no, a single termite cannot multiply or reproduce. Most termites you will ever see are actually unable to reproduce at all – only the highly guarded queen in the center of the colony can reproduce with her king.

That’s why it’s hard to accidentally carry termites into your home – unless you brought a queen with you, individual termites cannot start a colony.