Sunday, January 15, 2012

Termite World Life In







Sir David Attenborough wonders into the wonderful world of the termites in South Africa to better understand the ways in which these amazing animals ventilate their homes, breed, and fight for survival. Brilliant video from BBC insect and wildlife show 'Life in the Undergrowth'.
Video Rating: 4 / 5








DVD this is pulled from only available from the UK: bit.ly This bit about termites is so amazing, that it completely altered my understanding of the social order and man's supposed dominance of it. This termite colony's complex and unlikely construction is truly a testament to the incredible power of natural selection. The structure has air conditioning, a sewage system, food storage, fungus cultivation, and would be over a mile high if built to human scale. Truly astounding. Watch for the creepy shots of the termite queen near the end to see James Cameron's obvious inspiration for the queen at the end of Aliens.
Video Rating: 4 / 5

43 comments:

  1. serves you right for eating my house

    ReplyDelete
  2. the only thing we got better than them is our brain.

    ReplyDelete
  3. They certainly are instinctively wise. What a frightening battle! No such thing as 'fast food' for these ants.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Sir David always dress like that in the video. It become a symbol in my mind :)

    ReplyDelete
  5. i dont like insects not even butterfiles they are kinda gross... freak me out

    ReplyDelete
  6. ants always win, at everything, no exception.

    ReplyDelete
  7. good ol' Sir Attenborough..he is a legend

    ReplyDelete
  8. There is a small log that has been in my backyard for around a year. I saw acouple holes in it a few moths ago. Yesterday, Igot a closer look at the log and there were termtes. :( I was going to call pest control, but they aren't open on the weekend. I hope they don't ( if they haven't already ) invade my home. =(

    ReplyDelete
  9. Love 'Life in the Undergrowth' but ...come on BBC,...fuzzy 240p is hard to appreciate!

    ReplyDelete
  10. So black ants go looting too.. bit surpised they didn't set fire to the stack aswell

    ReplyDelete
  11. As pointed out by Turner, S and Soar, R (2008) the "called ventilation system" of the termite mound does not work as described in this video. This BBC episode lead to the construction of a "biomimetic" building (Eastgate complex) in Harare, Zimbabwe that is believed to "imitate" such natural concept which therefore renders invalid the "biomimetic" status of the building.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Thumbs up if you're here for a good old Zerg vs Zerg

    ReplyDelete
  13. Some video says the queen termite lays 1k eggs a day but some video says 30k eggs a day some say 5k eggs a day so.. which is the correct one

    ReplyDelete
  14. Imagine if ants and termites were the size of humans, our species would have died long ago.

    ReplyDelete
  15. @sauvang93 looks that way and gest like the ailen these thing are smart as hell thay work hard especily the queen she did a good job if the house was big enagh for me i wound be there room mate

    ReplyDelete
  16. The termite queen inspired ppl to create the infamous alien queen!!!

    ReplyDelete
  17. 0:22

    David Attenborough: But what could be in these towers? They sound *thump thump* hollow. Well, there's an easy way to find out.

    *CRRRAAAACKKKK*

    BREAK THAT SHIT OPEN THAT'S HOW.



    David Attenborough. Like a boss.

    ReplyDelete
  18. Anyone interested in Termites should read(or get the audiobooks) Arthur C Clarkes short stories "retreat from earth" and "the next tennants".

    ReplyDelete
  19. Yea, this is were james cameron got his queen from. TERMITES ARE AWESOME!

    ReplyDelete
  20. Staggering achievement from tiny insects. How I's that Knowledge given to them, near perfect.....

    ReplyDelete
  21. @hudson That's SIR David Attenborough to you :-P

    ReplyDelete
  22. @hudson whats the full name of this documentary?

    ReplyDelete
  23. i was brave enogh, i would put a nail into that queen

    ReplyDelete
  24. Hmph, if only we could use those humans that are un-employed, lazy, non-knowledgeable and have no use in society and make them do what the termites here have done. Actually live in peace and grow as a species all in one. Not divided and influenced by ignorant ideas of war, hatred, crime, false-justice, etc. Maybe someday humans will be rid of those people and be like the termite :) ... hopefully :\ ... sorry i got a bit carried away ;P

    ReplyDelete
  25. Wow, this is a good video to watch when your high! (:

    ReplyDelete
  26. David Attenborough is the greatest documentary presenter of all time. I admire his work and dedication. Thank you David and the BBC you have taught me everything I know about the animal kingdom and our planet! <3

    ReplyDelete
  27. @hudson @ Ridderheim7 Having said that, this is a fairly old documentary probably made in the early 90's (as David appears about middle age) and I would bet that David is inside the termite mount for the underground vein shot, but the queen shots are definitely in a terrarium.

    ReplyDelete
  28. @hudson I think Ridderheim7 does speak a bit of truth. The cameramen can't go through the all tunnels with a microtube camera searching for the queen as this would demage the tunnels and disrupt the environment of the termites. In animal documentaries there are some scenes that are simply impossible to shoot in the real environment that need to be set up / staged in order to get the right shot.

    ReplyDelete
  29. check out life in the undergrowth a newer documentary series made by the bbc with David attenborough .

    ReplyDelete