Bug Wiki
Bug Wiki / All bugs / Cockroaches and termites
Sticker of Magnetic termite
Bug card No. 0870 of 1,500

Magnetic termite

Amitermes meridionalis
Eats: PlantsCockroaches and termitesGardens and meadows6 legs

The magnetic termite is a tiny termite from northern Australia that builds giant flat mounds. Every mound points north and south, like the needle of a compass. That is how it got its name.

Lives in
Only the north of Australia's Northern Territory, around Darwin, in grassland that floods
Length
4 to 6 mm (0.16 to 0.24 in)
Top speed
about 0.05 km/h (0.03 mph)
On foot, estimate
Can it hurt you?
Harmless
Harmless. It is tiny and stays inside its mound.
What does it eat?
It eats grass and other plants. It collects dry grass and stores it like hay inside its mound.
For real!Photo of Magnetic termite
Picture by brewbooks from near Seattle, USA. CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

How big is it?

How long is it?

Magnetic termite about 6 mm long (0.24 in)A grain of rice about 6 mm (0.24 in)A toy building brick about 3.2 cm (1.3 in)
small enough to sit on your fingernailcould run across a dinner table in 72 seconds

How big is Magnetic termite compared to YOU?

Just maths in your browser. Nothing is saved or sent anywhere.

How fast is it?

cool stuff

Fun facts

1

Its mounds can be up to 4 metres tall, much taller than a grown-up.

2

The flat sides face east and west, so the mound warms up in the morning and evening but does not get too hot at noon.

3

One big mound can be home to up to a million termites.

4

When the grassland floods in the rainy season, the termites stay safe inside and eat their stored hay.

5

Many of them never leave the mound, so they are pale, nearly blind and have thin skin.

you asked

Most asked questions about Magnetic termite

?Why is it called the magnetic termite?

Because its flat mounds all point north and south, like a compass needle.

?How tall are magnetic termite mounds?

They can be up to 4 metres tall and 2.5 metres wide.

?What does the magnetic termite eat?

Grass and other plants, which it stores like hay inside the mound.

For bug experts

Scientific name
Amitermes meridionalis
Group
Cockroaches and termites
Family
Termitidae
Classification
Insecta > Blattodea > Termitidae
Lives on
Australia and Oceania
Also known as
Compass termite

Where the facts come from

  1. Amitermes meridionalis (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0): what it looks like, where it lives, what it eats, sizes and fun facts, retold in simple words.
  2. Picture by brewbooks from near Seattle, USA. CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons. The round sticker of this bug is cut from the same picture.

If we got something wrong, sorry, we are bug fans, not a science journal. Tell us at hello@bugwiki.app and we will fix it.

More from the same group: Cockroaches and termites

Madagascar hissing cockroachCockroaches and termitesGerman cockroachCockroaches and termitesAmerican cockroachCockroaches and termitesOriental cockroachCockroaches and termitesFlorida woods cockroachCockroaches and termitesAsian cockroachCockroaches and termites

Also at home here: Gardens and meadows

Rosy wolfsnailSnails, slugs and wormsCommon eastern bumblebeeBees and bumblebeesTawny crazy antAntsGreen-head antAntsBanded garden spiderSpidersBrown-tail mothMoths