CUBITERMES SUBARQUATUS TERMITARIES AS SHELTERS FOR SOIL FAUNA IN AFRICAN RAIN-FORESTS

Most soil fauna in tropical rainforests require a pre-existing shelter for at least part of their life cycles. Among termites and ants, the most frequently encountered taxa, the availability of appropriate nest ing sites is a major factor controlling the multiplication of colonies . Work carried out in five forests in southern Cameroon indicates that termitaries of Cubitermes subarquatus, whether active or abandoned, p rovide shelter for large numbers of invasive invertebrates, particular ly ants and other termite species, and may be a determining factor in the patchy distribution of many taxa. Dissections of 90 termitaries (6 5 active, 25 abandoned) produced a great diversity of invasive fauna, including 354 ant colonies representing 75 species in 31 genera. Ants occurred in all abandoned termitaries but 6.1% of active termitaries h ad no ants present. Nevertheless, in total active termitaries sheltere d more ant colonies (273) than did abandoned ones (81). Every termitar y examined also sheltered founding pairs or incipient colonies of alie n termites, but active C. subarquatus termitaries yielded fewer mature colonies of alien termites (56.9%) than did abandoned ones (84%).