Dispersal flight and dealation inKalotermes flavicollis(Fabr.)

Abstract

The effect of the flight experience and of housing conditions on dealation is analyzed in the dry wood termite Kalotermes flavicollis (Fabr.). Dealation rates of unflown alates was higher for isolated animals than for grouped ones. A short isolation, acting as a form of separation from the parental nest, largely reduced this inhibitory effect. Flight alone had a weak stimulatory effect. All these mechanisms are more effective in favouring dispersal than in preventing inbreeding.