Seasonal Effects of Calcium and Phosphates on the Feeding Preference of the Termite Reticulitermes flavipes (Isoptera: Rhinotermitidae)

Dietary requirements for termites may change seasonally in response to fluctuating caste development of a colony. Termite foragers may therefore select wood of differing nutritional quality when nymph, pseudergate, worker, or reproductive numbers differ seasonally relative to other months of the year. In this study, we tested whether the termite Reticulitermes flavipes preferentially fed on food sources containing calcium and phosphorus in the spring, summer, and fall. R. flavipes showed no significant preference for calcium in any season; however, there was a significant preference for phosphorus during the fall. This suggests that phosphorus may be limiting for R. flavipes during the fall and may be a component of wood determining feeding preference.