Understanding molting process in subterranean termites is a critical step to implement successful control program as chitin synthesis inhibitor baits interfere molting process of termites. In the present study, we report detailed molting process in Reticulitermes speratus kyushuensis Morimoto, 1968 that foraging workers start fasting period 5 days after they were collected and finished their entire molting process for the next 5 to 6 days. Ecdysis took less than an hour, specifically 9.2 ± 4.9 minutes from jack-knife posture to separation of the antenna and 36.6 ± 8.5 minutes from separation of the antenna to regain mobility. We believed relatively short time window of molting process in R. speratus kyushuensis may affect lengthy colony elimination time.

We have determined the mitochondrial genome of Reticulitermes speratus kyushuensis Morimoto, 1968. The total length of the R. speratus kyushuensis is 15,898 bp with 65.3% A + T content. It consists of 13 protein–coding, 22 tRNA, 2 rRNA genes and an A+T–rich control region. All the protein–coding genes used ATN as start codon. But the stop codons were TAA, TAG, and an incomplete termination codon (T) abutting an adjacent tRNA gene. The A+T–rich control region was 1,105 bp in length with 67.8% A + T content

Termites (Isoptera) are classified into approximately 3,106 species. In Korea, only one species has been identified, which is Reticulitermes speratus kyushuensis Morimoto. The termite, a social insect, is known to play an important role in nutrient cycling of the ecosystem, although some species of termites are well-known pests attacking wooden structures or any plant materials. However, there is a lack of research about termites in Korea, including aspects such the taxonomy, physiology, and ecology of termites. This study was carried out to provide valuable basic data on the ecological role of termites in an ecosystem in Korea for the future studies. For the experiments, soil and termite samples were randomly collected from Mt. Hwajang located in Jikdong-ri, Eonyang-eup, Ulju-gun, Korea between October 5 and 30, 2015. Analysis results showed that there were no significant differences in soil chemical properties between the soil samples just after air-drying and one year elapsed without any treatment. The treated soil with termites showed significantly higher than the soil without termite treatment. Chemical properties of total nitrogen, organic matter, available phosphate, pH, Calcium(Ca), Potassium(K) and Magnesium(Mg) in soil treated with termites were 1.11 ± 0.3 g kg-1, 43.3 ± 12.4 g kg-1, 27.4 ± 2.9 mg kg-1, 4.56 ± 0.2, 0.82 ± 0.2 cmolc kg-1, 3.18 ± 1.4 cmolc kg-1, 1.73 ± 1.1 cmolc kg-1, respectively. The values of soil property of without termite treatment were 0.56 ± 0.1 g kg-1, 30.5 ± 3.1 g kg-1, 24.0 ± 4.7 mg kg-1, 4.09 ± 0.1, 0.71 ± 0.2 cmolc kg-1, 2.88 ± 1.5 cmolc kg-1, 1.30 ± 0.7 cmolc kg-1, respectively. These results suggest that inhabitation of termites could improve soil chemical properties in an ecosystem.