Foraging Distance and Population Size of Juvenile Colonies of the Formosan Subterranean Termite (Isoptera: Rhinotermitidae) in Laboratory Extended Arenas.

The relationship between colony size and foraging distance was examined in extended foraging arenas with juvenile colonies of the Formosan subterranean termite, Coptotermes formosanus Shiraki. Our results showed that as long as royal pairs are present, larger colonies foraged at longer distances, and the oldest workers distributed farther away from the central nest. The results agree with the scaling model that predicts a large foraging range for animals of larger body size. An analysis of published data from population survey studies and field trials of bait toxicants showed that field colonies of the eastern subterranean termite, Reticulitermes flavipes (Kollar), follow the scaling model, while C. formosanus colonies were inconsistent with the model prediction. Reasons for the inconsistency with field data of C. formosanus are discussed.