the soldiers, who have large heads and jaws, guard the nest against insect enemies, chiefly ants. The workers keep the colony supplied with food, and they actually feed the queens, soldiers, and young termites.
Termites feed primarily on wood fiber, or cellulose, which they get form dead trees, rotting plant material in the soil , fence posts house timbers, or furniture. Although some kinds of termites can and do destroy human dwellings, they serve a vital function in the food web by recycling the nutrients found in dead wood. The nutrients can then be used by bacteria and plants.
Once inside the woodwork of a building, termites tunnel in all directions, with no openings showing on the surface. Houses may be inspected for signs of termite problems by searching for hollow timbers, for termite nests at the base of wood, or for the insects themselves. Unfortunately , the first sign of their presence may be the collapse of a wall or some other wooden structure.
To rid an area of termites would require the destruction of all the nests. It is more practical to protect a building against the insects by treating woodwork with chemicals or by covering all possible points of attack with metal.