Ação dos térmitas no solo

The order Isoptera is well known by its potential asa plague, although the number of species that are plagues issmall within the group. Termites are the dominant invertebratesin tropical terrestrial environments and are spread from tropicalrainforests to the savannahs, being found even in arid regions,in various habitats. These insects have a major role and arestill little studied in tropical ecosystems. Nutrient cycling,aeration, water infiltration of soil, bioturbation, aggregatesformation and organic material decomposition, are processesinfluenced by the action of termites, which , directly or indirectly,affect soil and landscape formation wherever they are. Wesuggest that a better approach must be addressed in futureresearches about these insects influence in the soil underspecified conditions of use and management, in sustainablefood production and climate changes . Key words : Isoptera, termite activity, soil biology, bioturbation,plague-termites . INTRODUCAO A importância ecologica dos isopteros emecossistemas tropicais e grande, principalmente quandoconsideradas as modificacoes que podem causar noambiente, desde alteracoes no aspecto visual dapaisagem, pela construcao de seus ninhos, alem dealteracoes da topografia, como dos microrrelevos demurundus, ate modificacoes nas propriedades fisicase quimicas do solo, efeitos no processo dedecomposicao, ciclagem de nutrientes, entre outros(HOLT & LEPAGE, 2000). Os cupins (termitas) sao amais importante fauna do solo nos tropicos quentessazonalmente secos (LOBRY DE BRUYN &CONACHER, 1990), sendo fundamentais para ofuncionamento do ecossistema, pois ocupam niveistroficos na cadeia alimentar do solo (SILVA et al., 2007).Os termitas sao reconhecidos como “engenheiros doecossistema” (DANGERFIELD et al., 1998), devido ahabilidade que possuem de modificar a estrutura do