Determining the age of drywood termite fecal pellets utilizing comparative analysis of bacterial diversity

The western drywood termite, Incisitermes minor (Blattodea: Kalotermitidae), is an economically significant structural pest, especially in southern California. Due to their cryptic biology, aside from swarming alates, fecal pellets typically are the only sign of drywood termite infestations. Drywood termite fecal pellets can be utilized to determine different aspects of termite biology such as species identification, cellulose content of the food source, colony size, age, and status. In this study we explored if the diversity in bacterial communities could be utilized to determine the relative age of fecal pellets. Furthermore, we assessed if population or food source drives bacterial diversity in fecal pellets. We sequenced 16S rRNA genes in fecal pellet samples at 4 different time points: 2 weeks or less, 3 months, 6 months, and 1 year. Implications for drywood termite control and future research direction will be discussed.