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Activity for Termites Digest Wood Thanks to Microbes

Topic
  • Microbiology
  • Bacteria
  • Anatomy & Physiology
  • Zoology
  • Ecology
  • Communities
Resource Type
  • Activities
  • Film Activities
Level
High School — GeneralHigh School — AP/IBCollege
Favorited By
9 Users
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Description

This activity explores the content presented in the animated film Termites Digest Wood Thanks to Microbes, which describes the symbiotic relationship between termites and the wood-digesting protists in their gut.

In this episode of the series I Contain Multitudes, Ed Yong explores the secrets behind termites’ power to digest an abundant source of food: wood. The key to this ability is the microbes in their gut. Yong and Princeton scientist Xinning Zhang discuss how termites evolved into wood-eating specialists about 150 million years ago, and how they use a unique social behavior to transfer the microbes from one generation to the next.

The “Student Handout” probes students’ understanding of the key concepts addressed in the film. The “Educator Materials” document provides suggested pause points in the film with questions for students, background information, and detailed discussion points; a list of related resources and references; and an answer key for the “Student Handout.”

Student Learning Targets
  • Describe the symbiotic relationship between termites and the microbes in their gut.

  • Use evidence to draw distinctions between scientific facts and inferences.

Details
Estimated Time
One 50-minute class period.
Key Terms

digestion, mutualism, protist, symbiosis

Primary Literature

Breznak, John A., and Andreas Brune. “Role of microorganisms in the digestion of lignocellulose by termites.” Annual Review of Entomology 39, 1 (1994): 453–487. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.en.39.010194.002321.   

Warnecke, Falk, Peter Luginbühl, Natalia Ivanova, Majid Ghassemian, Toby H. Richardson, Justin T. Stege, Michelle Cayouette, et al. “Metagenomic and functional analysis of hindgut microbiota of a wood-feeding higher termite.” Nature 450, 7169 (2007): 560–565. https://doi.org/10.1038/nature06269.

Terms of Use

The resource is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International license. No rights are granted to use HHMI’s or BioInteractive’s names or logos independent from this Resource or in any derivative works.

Version History
Date Published 04.02.18
Date Updated 04.02.18
Curriculum Connections
NGSS (2013)

HS-LS1-6, HS-LS2-3; SEP6

AP Biology (2019)

SYI-1.H, ENE-3.D, ENE-4.B, ENE-4.C, EVO-1.B; SP1

IB Biology (2016)

4.1

AP Environmental Science (2013)

II.A

IB Environmental Systems and Societies (2017)

2.1

Common Core (2010)

ELA.RST.9-12.2, ELA.WHST.9-12.9

Vision and Change (2009)

CC2; DP1

Materials
Student Handout (PDF) 277 KB
Educator Materials (PDF) 247 KB
FMT Infographic (JPG) 2 MB
Use This Resource With
Video Resource
Termites Digest Wood Thanks to Microbes
Related Science News
Symbiosis: It’s Complicated
Me, Myself, and a Hundred Trillion: Dining with your Gut Microbiome

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