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How do inquilinous termites live with another termite species in the same nest?

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Learn how termites use salivary secretions to cement debris to decaying wood nests in their rainforest habitat — termite A termite nest in a tropical rainforest.

Inquilinous termites maintain an obligatory association with host termite species by living within the host's mound nests while keeping their own galleries completely separate. These guest species, such as Ahamitermes and Incolitermes, feed on the inner carton material of the host's nest.1

This relationship is highly unusual because termites are typically hostile toward other species, and host termites will attack inquilinous guests if the partitions between their respective galleries are breached. In some cases, the dependence is even more profound; for instance, Incolitermes relies on the host species not only for food but also for access to exit holes during swarming, allowing the inquiline alates to emerge alongside the host. While other invertebrates known as termitophiles may live in termite nests, inquilinous termites are distinct in that they are themselves termites that have evolved to live exclusively within the structures built by another termite species.1