Journal of Archaeological Science 1990,17, Ill-143

Consider the Humble Termite: Termites as Agents

of Post-depositional Disturbance at African
Archaeological Sites
Sally McBreartya

(Received 21 November 1986, revised manuscript accepted 21 April 1989)

Interpretive models used by archaeologists routinely exclude the effects of post-

depositional processes.Severe bioturbation by termites is common throughout the
tropics and substantially alters archaeological profiles in much of sub-Saharan Africa.
Termites affect textural, chemical, mineralogical, and stratigraphic properties of soils.
Their nest building activities produce pseudofacts which may resemble hearths or other
archaeological features. While contributing to local bone preservation by raising local
pH, their net effect is to accelerate bone dissolution through increasing soil porosity.
Termite burrowing affects the vertical distribution of stone artifacts. They may either
disperse artifacts where they were formerly concentrated at an archaeological horizon,
or they may concentrate formerly diffuse material at the base of their activities. Such
a concentration may mimic an archaeological horizon and may correspond to the
position of the water table. These factors profoundly affect the level of temporal
resolution which is appropriate in the interpretation of much archaeological evidence
in the tropics.

Keywords: INSECTS, PEDOTURBATION, POST-DEPOSITIONAL

PROCESSES,TROPICAL SOILS, PLIO-PLEISTOCENE, SUB-SAHARAN
AFRICA.

Introduction
Termites are social insects of the order Isoptera which enjoy a nearly worldwide
distribution. Considered pests in North America, their colonies are numerous especially
in the plains and western states. Their existence is of special relevance to archaeologists
working in the tropics and subtropics, where their mounds comprise such conspicuous
features of the landscape (See Figure 1).
Drummond (1888) remarks on the extent of termite activity in the regions of East Africa
bordering Lake Victoria, whose outlet at Jinja is the source of the White Nile:

Herodotus, with equal poetic and scientific truth, describes Egypt as “the gift of the Nile”.
Possibly had he lived today he might have carried his vision farther back still, and referred some
of it to the labours of the humble termites in the forest slopes about Victoria Nyanza
(Drummond, 1888: 158).
“Departmentof Anthropology, BrandeisUniversity,Waltham, MA 02254,U.S.A.
111
0305-4403/90/020111+33 SO3.00/0 Q 1990AcademicPressLimited
112 S. McBREARTY

Figure I. Macrotermes mound, Magadi, southern Kenya. Volkswagen for scale.

This paper investigates the proposition that termites are important in altering
sedimentary profiles in tropical Africa. Where are termites found? Exactly what effect do
they have on geological deposits? Are they numerous enough to have significant impact at
archaeological and paleontological sites? Termites are considered here as one among
many post-depositional factors affecting tropical terrestrial deposits, and specific case
studies that document termite activities in archaeological contexts are presented.
Archaeological Importance
The role of termites in African archaeological contexts has occasionally been noted.
Fossilized termitaria have been recognized in an early Pleistocene occupation at Koobi
Fora in northern Kenya (Isaac, pers. comm.), in Pliocene deposits at Laetoli, northern
Tanzania (Sands, 1987) and in Plio-Pleistocene sediments in the Middle Awash region of
Ethiopia (Clark & Harris, 1985).
Cahen (1976, 1978a) and Moeyersons (1978) observe the disturbing effects of termite
burrowing in Pleistocene deposits at Gombe Point, Zaire. Similar conditions have been
noted for the site of Dinga, Kwango, Zaire (Cahen & Moeyersons, 1977) and at the
Acheulian site of Kamoa, Shaba, Zaire (Cahen, 1975). Convincing evidence of termite
disturbance at the Lupemban site of Masango, Burundi, has been presented by Van Noten
et al. (1972). Sampson (1972) suggests that the stratigraphy of the Fauresmith occurrence
at the South African site of Muirton on the Vaal River may have been affected by termites.
Crossley (1986) suggests that termites are most likely to have been responsible for the
accumulation of the upper member of the Chitimwe Formation, which overlies Middle
Stone Age artifacts at and near the archaeological site of Chaminade in northeastern
Malawi. At Muguruk, western Kenya, I have attributed some of the observed features of
the Middle Stone Age archaeological profile to termite activities (McBrearty, 1986,1988).
Watson (1967) describes the effects of termites on Iron Age interments.
 TERMITES AS POST-DEPOSITIONAL AGENTS 113

Site Formation and Preservation

In archaeological interpretation, depositional and post-depositional factors contributing
to site composition must be ruled out before human behaviour may be inferred to be the
cause of observed patterns in artifactual remains (Foley, 198 1; Schiffer, 1983). However,
despite the growing importance of geoarchaeology in the last decade (e.g. Shackley, 1975;
Renfrew, 1976; Butzer, 1977; Gladfelter, 1977, 198 1; Bullard, 1978; Harris, 1979; Hassan,
1979; Rapp & Gifford, 1982, 1985), appreciation is seldom expressed for the role of post-
depositional and decompositional factors in producing those features of the landscape
that archaeologists call sites. This problem is particularly acute in the study of Pleistocene
occurrences in the humid tropics, where ancient occupations may be represented by little
more than lithic debris scattered through many metres of otherwise featureless lateritic
soils.
Traditionally Pleistocene archaeologists have employed a static model for site
interpretation which assumes ideal conditions of site formation, burial, and preservation.
These conditions include recognizable discrete human behavioural events, quick gentle
burial, and lack of post-depositional disturbance. This model permits the construction of
chronologies based upon sequences of thin sedimentary layers which are believed to
represent distinct prehistoric occupations at stratified sites, but it is plagued by undeniable
problems, which have been reviewed by Villa (1982) and Villa & Courtin (1983). In fact,
ideal conditions of behaviour, burial, and preservation are rarely to be found in any
setting. First, hominid behaviour may be difficult to differentiate from that of other
prehistoric site occupants. The work of Brain (1981) Bunn (1981), Hill (1984), Potts
(1984, 1988), and Potts & Shipman (198 1) has shown that early hominid sites were
routinely visited by carnivores, and that they are among the agents of bone accumulation
and modification.
Second, the human occupants themselves contribute to site disturbance (Matthews,
1965). Vertical artifact dispersal of 10 to 20 cm by human trampling in fluvial sands has
been demonstrated by Gifford (1978,1980), Gifford & Behrensmeyer (1977), and Gifford-
Gonzalez et al. (1985) and by Stockton (1973) and Siiriainen (1977) in a rock shelter
context.
Third, the process of burial, particularly at open sites, usually involves some degree of
selection and rearrangement of occupation debris. Some factors affecting potential fossili-
zation of vertebrate remains are summarized by Hill (1978, 1980) and Gifford-Gonzalez
(198 1). Dispersal of stone artifacts by fluvial site formation processes has been examined
by Schick (1986) and the varying degrees of temporal resolution possible in analogous
vertebrate fossil assemblages has been discussed by a number of authors (Schwab, 1976;
Sadler, 1981; Schindell, 1980, 1982a,b; Van Andell, 1981; Behrensmeyer, 1982; Dingus
& Sadler, 1982; Sadler & Dingus, 1982; Dingus, 1984; Retallack, 1984; Badgley et al.,
1986).
Fourth, post-depositional processes routinely affect the position of buried objects. At a
number of sites conjoinable stone artifacts, produced at the same instant in time, have
been found vertically separated by considerable thickness of deposit. Villa (1983) has
documented vertical displacement of conjoinable artifacts of up to 45 cm in the dune
sands at the Acheulian site of Terra Amata in southern France. Vertical post-depositional
artifact movement has been noted at the Belgian epipaleolithic site of Meer (Van Noten
et al., 1978, 1980) the Titelburg Iron Age hill fort in Luxembourg (Rowlett & Robbins,
1982) and at the Powell mesolithic site in Dorset, England (Barton & Bergman, 1982).
Bunn et al. (1980) have observed conjoinable pieces vertically separated by up to 60 cm at
the site of FxJj50 at Koobi Fora in northern Kenya. Cahen (1976, 1978~) describes
vertical separation of conjoinable pieces at Gombe Point near Kinshasa, Zaire, of as much
as 1 m.
114 S. McBREARTY

Some of the post-depositional processes affecting archaeological sites have been

reviewed by Wood & Johnson (1978). The survival of bone is dependent upon soil
chemistry (Hare, 1980; White & Hannus, 1983). The effects of burrowing rodents in
disrupting site spatial integrity are well known to archaeologists; their role is discussed by
Bocek (1986), Erlandson (1984), and Johnson (1989). Cryoturbation has long been recog-
nized as an agent of sediment disturbance under periglacial conditions (Rolfsen, 1980).
Alternate wetting and drying of sand has been experimentally shown by Cahen & Moeyer-
sons (1977) to produce minor vertical artifact movement. The role of earthworms in soil
redistribution and aeration in temperate regions was examined by Darwin over 100 years
ago (Darwin, 1881); their effects on archaeological sites are reviewed by Stein (1983). In
the tropics, sediments may be deeply reworked by soil fauna. The chief agents of this
process are termites.

Termite Densities and Distribution

It is important to ask where termites are found and if they occur in sufficient numbers to
warrant serious consideration. It can be immediately replied that termites are ubiquitous
throughout the tropics and subtropics of Africa, Asia, and Australia, where they are
both diverse and numerous. Sometimes formerly termed “white ants” (Marais, 1937;
Maeterlinck, 1939), over 570 species of termites and 89 genera have been described for the
Ethiopian zoographic region (Bouillon, 1970).
Termites have been present in Africa for tens of millions of years. Their closest relatives
are the cockroaches (Wilson, 1971; Ruelle, 1985) and both groups are thought to be
descended from a cockroach-like ancestor. The complex caste based system of social
organization of the higher termites (Termitidae) is thought to have evolved by 50 Ma
(Wilson, 1980) although an origin as early as the Cretaceous has been postulated by
Emerson (1971). The widespread African subfamily Macrotermitinae is thought to have
originated in sub-Saharan Africa during the Oligocene (Burnham, 1978; Thakur, 1981),
although their fossil record is sparse prior to the Pliocene (Sands, 1987).
The major taxonomic divisions of termites are based upon their feeding habits. All are
vegetarians, although carrion eating has been observed by Thorne & Kimsey (1983).
Termites will consume dead or standing vegetation and animal dung, either in place or
after transporting it to the nest site. The dry wood eating Kalotermitidae are concentrated
in the temperate zones. In the tropics, the main termite groups include the grass harvesters
(e.g. Trinervitermes), the soil feeders (e.g. Cubitermes), and those which cultivate combs of
symbiotic fungi (Termitomyces) within the nest (e.g. Macrotermes and Odontotermes).
Termites are found in a variety of habitats. While many West African species are
confined to rain forests, common East African varieties are savanna dwellers and require
more open conditions (Harris, 1961; Glover et al., 1964; Goodland, 1965; Pomeroy,
1976a,b,l978,1983a,b). Termites contribute significantly to the decomposition of organic
matter in forest habitats (Anderson & Swift, 1983) but they play an even more important
role as decomposers in arid regions. Termite biomass is approximately equal to that of
ungulates on open savanna, and they are about as important as the ungulates as grass
consumers (Deshmukh, 1986,1987; Sands, 1987).
Both humans and other primate groups make use of this widespread and readily
available food resource. Termite “fishing” among wild chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes),
primarily for individuals of the species Macrotermes bellicosus and Pseudacanthotermes
militaris, has been documented by Goodall (1986). Lowland gorillas (Gorilla gorilla) in
Gabon break open Cubitermes nests and consume the insects in large numbers (Tutin &
Fernandez, 1983). Similar behaviour has been observed among gorillas in the Central
African Republic (Carroll, 1989). Termites provide an important source of food for
human beings in tropical Africa, although they appear to be less intensively exploited in
 TERMITES AS POST-DEPOSITIONAL AGENTS

(0) (b)

Figure 2. Schematic cross-sections of(a) open mound built by h4acrotermes subhya-

lima, and (b) closed mound built by M. michaelseni, southern Kenya (after Arshad,
1981: 162, figure I).

Amazonia (Dufour, 1987). They are particularly rich in protein and lipids which may be
lacking in a diet high in carbohydrates (Hladik, 1977); 100 g of fried termites have a
nutritive value of 561 kilocalories (Bodenheimer, 1951). African termite alates swarm at
the end of the dry season, and are thus available at a critical time when cultivated food
supplies may be running low (Thon, 1946; De Schlippe, 1956; Mielke, 1978; Freedman,
1983; and pers. obs.).
To human observers, the most striking behaviour of termites is mound building,
primarily because it takes place above ground. The mound building Macroterminae
are the most abundant group in East African savannas (e.g. Macrotermes and
Trinervirermes); other species are primarily subterranean and do not construct mounds
(e.g. Cubitermes and Odontotermes, but see Darlington, 1985). The metabolic activity of
the colony’s cultivated fungi, plus the respiration of the insects themselves, generates
considerable heat (Sands, 1987), and mounds and the air shafts they contain act as a
ventilation system which regulates the internal temperature of the colony (See Figure 2).
Mounds also improve drainage and may function secondarily in defense (Ruelle, 1964;
Wood & Sands, 1978; Collins, 1979; Darlington, 1985). In sub-Saharan Africa, large
uninhabited termite mounds are occasionally put to economic use. They may be hollowed
out and transformed into cooking ovens (Koeune, 1977) or iron smelting furnaces
(Killick, pers. comm.).
The persistence of termite mounds varies among species and with local conditions.
Mean lifespan for mounds of Trinervifermes in Upper Volta is estimated at 7 years (Roose,
1976). For Macrotermes bellicosus and Pseudacanthotermes mounds, Pomeroy (1976b)
estimates lifespans of 10 and 5 years, respectively, although colonies of other species of
Macrotermes may remain active for 80 years or more (Grasse, 1949), and colonies of
Nasutitermes may live for 50 years (Lee & Wood, 1971a). On the basis of radiocarbon
dates and the relative states of bone weathering, Watson (1967) estimates a termite mound
in northeastern Zimbabwe occupied by both Macrotermes and Odontotermes to be as
much as 700 years old, and Darlington (1985) points out that repeated recolonization of
the same site may allow some mounds to survive for centuries.
Densities of termite mounds vary with habitat (Goodland, 1965; Baroni-Urbani et al.,
1978; Pomeroy, 1978, 1983~; Golley, 1983; Josens, 1983; Salick et al., 1983) and their
116 S. McBREARTY

distribution is in part dependent upon availability of water. In an early study Kellogg &
Daval(1949) estimated that in parts of Zaire termitaria cover 30% of the ground. Sands
(1965) has computed an average density of 14.8 occupied mounds per ha for Mucrotermes
bellicosus in undisturbed woodland savanna in northern Nigeria, where the smaller
mounds of Trinervitermes reach densities of 108.6 ha-’ in the same study area.
In savanna vegetation on laterite, occupied Trinervitermes mounds may be an order of
magnitude less frequent, only 12.4 ha-’ having been observed by Bodot (1967) in Ivory
Coast. Pomeroy (1977) reports an average density for Ugandan Macrotermes mounds of
lo-40 ha-‘. Mound densities of two species of Mucrotermes in semiarid Kajiado District,
southern Kenya, range up to 9 ha-’ (Pomeroy, 1983~). In the more arid savanna of Tsavo
East National Park, southern Kenya, Mucrotermes mounds may number fewer than one
per ha, but a five- to six-fold increase in the density of mounds in 1982 over that of 1976 in
Tsavo is related by Pomeroy (1983~) to the end of drought conditions. Sands (1987)
tentatively estimates that numbers of active Macrotermes colonies ranged between one
and 3.93 ha-’ under the arid conditions prevailing at Laetoli during the Pliocene.
Termite numbers can be appreciated by contemplating the fact that each active colony
contains at least one queen, and that mature queens of some species can produce 20,000 to
30,000 eggs per day (Ruelle, 1985). Estimates of the densities of individual termites range
up to 4000 rnp2 (Wood, 1975; Wood 8~Johnson, 1978; Wood & Sands, 1978; Wood et al.,
1982), but the fumigation technique of Darlington (1979) has increased population
estimates for termite colonies by several orders of magnitude over previous live digging
methods. She has recovered over 2 million individuals from a single nest of Mucrotermes
subhyalinus less than 10 m3 in area near Kajiado, southern Kenya. Sands (1987) estimates
that a mature Mucrotermes colony may contain up to 5 million termites. Using Pomeroy’s
estimate of 9 mounds ha-’ for the Kajiado region, and Darlington’s more conservative
estimate of 2 million individuals per nest, we may assume that this semiarid habitat
supports as many as 27,000,OOOtermites ha-‘; greater numbers would be expected in more
humid regions.

Effects on Archaeological Profiles

Judged purely on the basis of their numbers and distribution, the impact of termites upon
tropical environments may be expected to be prodigious. Knowing that they live primarily
underground, we must ask precisely what effect they have upon archaeological deposits.
Termites excavate extensive subterranean passageways and transport huge quantities of
sediment to the surface in building nests and other structures. Besides the creation
of structures which could be misinterpreted as objects of human manufacture, these
activities have two major effects important to the archaeologists: (1) cavities are created
below the surface, and (2) sediment is brought to the surface which subsequently is
eroded, reburying the existing landscape. This redistributed sediment has textural and
mineralogical properties by which it can be identified.
The amount of sediment involved in this process can be judged by considering the
dimensions and volume of termite mounds. The impressive mounds of Mucrotermes may
reach heights of 9 m and basal diameters of 30 m (Howse, 1970). Mounds of M. fulciger
may be as much as 8 m high, with basal diameters of 15 m in the miombo woodland of
central Africa (Malaisse, 1978). Macrotermes michaelseni routinely construct mounds
greater than 4 m in height (Ruelle, 1985). Ugandan M. bellicosus mounds achieve volumes
of 6 m3 (Pomeroy, 19766). Meyer (1960) confirmed the estimate of Kellogg & Daval
(1949) by calculating that 2,400,400 kg of soil per ha in central Zaire, or 30% of the land
surface, may be locked up in Macrotermes mounds at any given time.
The fact that the effects of termite architecture are not confined to the surface has
profound implications for the integrity of archaeological occurrences in tropical settings.
 TERMITES AS POST-DEPOSITIONAL AGENTS

Figure 3. Macrorermes ventilation chimney (arrowed) and foraging galleries

(arrowed) on the bank of the Kapthurin river, Baring0 District, Kenya.

The sediment used for the construction of mounds, sheets, and runways may be brought
up from considerable depth in the soil. Estimates range up to 2 or 3 m, but Pomeroy
(1976~) estimates that Ugandan Macrotermes bellicosus and Pseudacanthotermes sp.
construct their mounds primarily of topsoil from depths of 0.5 to 1.Om below the surface,
and this is probably the more common range. Termites may delve deeply in search of
water, and they have been recorded at depths of 23 m (Watson, 1972), 30 m (Marais,
1937), and even 70m (Noirot, 1970; Lee & Wood, 1971~; Wood & Sands, 1978; Josens,
1983). Their effective downward mobility is limited by the nature of substrate and the
location of the water table.
Not only do termites excavate to great depths, but also their galleries may be large, and
the total network dense and extensive (See Figure 3). Macrotermes subhyalinus creates a
network of several kilometres of branching tunnels within its 1 ha foraging area (Sands,
1987). Darlington (1979) describes subsurface foraging passages for the related species M.
michaefseni as large as 7 cm in diameter which radiate at depths of 50-60 cm from the
118 S. McBREARTY

surface to distances up to 10 m from the nest. At this distance they branch at l&25 cm
below the surface to form a dense network of smaller underground passages about 34 cm
in diameter [See Figure 4(a)]. These may be interspersed with elliptical storage pits
(Darlington, 1982). Small intersecting passages may terminate at distances up to 50 m
from the nest [Darlington, 1982; see figure 4(b)].
Obviously, stone artifacts or other objects may easily migrate downward through such
cavities. This situation is clearly described for the site of Masango, Burundi, by Van Noten
et al. (1972).
Abandoned termite galleries may become infilled with surface soil washed in from
above, and Watson (1960) has observed the resulting tube-shaped features filled with light
coloured, fine grained, less compact infill at depths of up to 8.5 m in West African soils.
Robinson (1958) documents a zone of termite galleries filled in with dark coloured,
nutrient rich, less compact soil at depths of 60-120 cm in a coffee plantation in Kenya.
Ratcliffe el al. (1952) note that infilled termite galleries penetrate to substantial depths,
often into limestone bedrock, and that plant roots preferentially follow the course of the
less densely filled galleries. In older deposits passages may persist as mineralized casts.
Vertical cylindrical structures cemented by calcite within the tuffaceous sediments at Lot.
9 at Laetoli, Tanzania, may be the fossilized remains of Pliocene termite water collecting
routes (Sands, 1987).

Stone Lines and Soil Biomantles

Many tropical landscapes are buried under vast quantities of termite-produced debris.
Understanding this burial process is vital for interpreting tropical archaeological
sequences. Sediment is brought to the surface by different termite species for the construc-
tion not only of mounds, but also of covered runways leading to feeding sites, or sheets
covering the food source itself. This sediment is subsequently redistributed by erosive
forces. Pomeroy (1976~) estimates that 13 cm per hectare per year is accumulated on the
surface from erosion of termite mounds in his Ugandan study area, although some of this
deposit will subsequently be lost to further erosion. Nye (1955) calculates that Nigerian
Macrotermes bellicosus mound-building activities have resulted in the accumulation of
30 cm of soil in 12,000 years. Williams (1968) reports that termites in the Northern
Territory of Australia have accumulated 15 cm of soil in the same period of time, with
about three times that amount having been lost to erosion. Lepage (1974) computes that
2000 kg haa’ of soil are brought to the surface every year by mound building Macrotermes
subhyalinus in the savannas of Senegal, while Wood & Sands (1978) estimate an annual
accumulation by Macrotermes sp. of 300 kg ha-’ for the moister woodland of Nigeria.
Bagine (1984) estimates that Odontotermes latericius and 0. boranicus translocate about
1059 kg ha-’ per year to construct surface feeding runways in arid Marsabit District of
northern Kenya.
From some of these data and from their own observations in northern Australia, Lee &
Wood (1971a,b) calculate rates of surface sediment accumulation for termites which range
from 0.02 to 0.10 mm per year. Holt et al. (1980) estimate that termites of northern
Queensland, Australia, accumulate soil at a rate of 0.0254.05 mm per year. Indeed, they
suggest that a single generation of termites is capable of reworking 20 tons ha-’ of these
red and yellow soils.
The role of earthworms in burying objects on the surface was recognized by Darwin
(188 l), and the phenomenon is described from an archaeological context by Stein (1983).
In the tropics, transport of sediment to the surface by termites may result in buried “stone
lines” such as those observed in Zaire by De Ploey [ 1964; See figure 5(a)]. Stone lines may
run parallel to the modern surface, and are overlain by a featureless “biomantle” of sand
and clay (Wood &Johnson, 1978) which may be many metres thick. As termites bring soil
 TERMITES AS POST-DEPOSITIONAL AGENTS 119

Mound

Inner zone foraging zone Peripheral zone

Inl
5-10 m
A
30-40 m
I
50 m
I

Y” Abandoned neat

(b)

I I I
D
0 IO 20 \
m

Figure 4. (a) Schematic cross-section of nest and foraging passage system of Macro-
termes michaelseni (not to scale; after Darlington, 1982: 238, figure 1); (b) Map
of underground passages excavated by a single colony of M. michuelseni (after
Darlington, 1982: 239, figure 2).
120 S. McBREARTY

Modern trrmitario LSA artifacts

Yellow clayey sand

Angular grOVeI,
uron plsolitha,
ESA ond MSA artifacts

LSA artifacts

560 300 IO0 ‘0

m

Gravel, pisoliths,

Modern fermitario

0 800 1600
m
Figure 5. (a) Transverse section of the terrace of the Middle Kwilu near Thysville,
Zaire, showing stone line at the base of termite-altered yellow clayey sand (after de
Ploey, 1964: 405, figure 4); (b) transverse section of Chaminade, northern Malawi,
showing the stone line underlying termite altered red clayey sand, and their relation
to modern and fossil termitaria (after Crossley, 1986: 193, figure 2).

particles to the surface, gravel sized objects, which may include stone artifacts, accumulate
as a lag deposit at the effective base of termite activity (See Figures 5 and 6). Burrowing
rodents produce similar effects at temperate latitudes (Johnson, 1989). Termite-produced
stone lines usually have sharp upper and lower boundaries and often correspond to the
position of the water table. These mechanisms for burial of coarse debris have been
proposed for the quartz banded soils of East Africa (Ollier, 1959), for the stone horizons
near Umtali, Zimbabwe (Watson, 1962), and for Sudanese gravel and loam deposits
(Folster, 1964). Stone artifacts may become concentrated at a consistent depth in this way,
giving a false impression of an ancient land surface or living floor.
Extensive termite activity may thus produce a widespread uniform mantle of topsoil
with characteristics similar to those of the soil in a termite mound. De Ploey (1964) notes
that particle size distributions of sediments thought to be reworked by termites resemble
those of samples from nearby mounds of Macrotermes, and Pomeroy (1976~) reports that
his Ugandan termite species produces a stone free topsoil with properties closer to loam
than the average subsoil. Crossley (1986) estimates that the upper member of the
Chitimwe Formation in northeastern Malawi represents such a termite produced soil
 TERMITES AS POST-DEPOSITIONAL AGENTS 121

0
2
(01 E
4

6
IO 20 30

Mound moterlol Stone horizon

0 Mmerol horizon 0 Outer cone

@ Weothered rock 0 Inner cone

IO u

Fme grey soil m(TJ~ron concretion 7o

0 Coorse light soil

@
Rock

es=e Stone line

---- Water table (wet season)
-..-..- Woter table (dry season)
Figure 6. Cross-sections of weathered, abandoned termite mounds and adjacent
soils, showing textural properties and buried stone lines. (a) Umtali, Zimbabwe
(after Watson, 1962: 47, figure I); (b) Iron Age burial ground, Harare, Zimbabwe
(after Watson, 1967: 665, figure 2).

mantle which accumulated at a rate of between 50 and 240 mm per 1000 years. I have
applied the estimates of Lee, Wood, and others in the stratigraphic interpretation of a
Middle Stone Age occupation at the site of Muguruk, western Kenya (McBrearty, 1986,
1988).

Textural Properties
Certain textural properties are characteristic of soils reworked by termites, primarily
because they select sediment for transport according to particle size. Clay size particles
may be ingested and later egested during nest building; silt particles may be grasped in the
mandibles and carried to the nest site (Lee & Wood, 1971~). The fungus growing
Macroterminae cement these soil particles together with saliva to build nests and galleries;
among the soil feeders, faeces containing the soil particles are the construction medium.
The hard outer shell of the mounds of some wood and grass eating termites, as well as the
lining of the inner nests, may be composed of orally transported soil particles mixed with
excreta (Wood & Sands, 1978).
The particle size distribution of the resulting sediment thus varies with the animals’
carrying capabilities, which is largely a function of mean body size within the colony. The
maximum particle size transported by Mucrotermes, the largest of termite genera, is 4 mm;
for the smaller Cubitermes it is probably about 1.5 mm (Darlington, 1985; Crossley, 1986).
122 S. McBREARTY

4
IO 0 6 4 2 0 -2 -4

99.9

99

95

90

00
s

50

20

IO

5
/-
.’
0.001 0.004 0.016 0.062 0,25 I 4 16
mm

0 Korongo biomontle (N-15)“’

@ Modern mounds on Korongo biomontle (N=6)“’

@ Modern (N=6) ond fossil (N -2) mounds on Chltlmwe

grovels”’
-.- Muguruk member 4 (N=l)“’

Figure 7. Cumulative grain size frequencies for samples from Karonga, Malawi,
and Muguruk, Kenya. Mounds are those of Mucrotermes fulciger. [Sources: (1)
Crossley, 1986: 195, figure 4; (2) McBrearty, 1986: 122, figure 2.81.

Most species preferentially select the fine soil fractions for nest construction, with the
result that mounds have a higher proportion of fine particles than the soil from which they
are constructed (Lee&Wood, 1971a,6; Wood & Sands, 1978).
Lee & Wood (197 la) report that the workings of Australian termites result in a deposit
that is at least 20% clay. The Macroterminae of sub-Saharan Africa construct their
mounds from precisely selected clay-rich subsoil horizons (Boyer, 1948; Grasse, 1950;
Hesse, 1955; Nye, 1955; Harris, 1956; Watson, 1962, 1975; Stoops, 1964, 1968; Arshad,
198 1; Pomeroy, 1983b), and selection of clay for nest building has also been documented
for African Cubitermes and Procubitermes by Kemp (1955) Maldague (1959), Stoops
(1964), Wood et al. (1983), and Anderson & Wood (1984).
Thus surface soils in areas where termites are active are characteristically high in clay
content. The activities of Macrotermes in the Karonga area of Malawi has resulted in a soil
mantle that is 73-82% sand, 5-9% silt, and 12-20% clay (See Figure 7). In some areas of
intense erosion, sheet wash may remove the clay-rich mantle, exposing the impoverished
sandy soil beneath (Roose, 1976).
When burned, the natural concentrations of clay in old termitaria may mimic hearths
or fireplaces in the archaeological record (Clark & Harris, 1985). The clayey soils of
 TERMITES AS POST-DEPOSITIONAL AGENTS 123

abandoned termite mounds are exploited for construction purposes throughout much of
sub-Saharan Africa (Milne, 1947; Lee & Wood, 1971~; and pers. obs.).

Mineralogical Properties
Termites affect soil mineralogy. It is consistently observed that termite mounds exhibit
high concentrations of certain minerals, including calcium, magnesium, phosphate,
potassium, and iron (Ap Griffeth, 1938; Adamson, 1943; Pendleton, 1943; Milne, 1947;
Sys, 1955; Robinson, 1958; Stoops, 1964; Lee &Wood, 19710; Watson, 1974u,b, 1975;
Pomeroy, 19760; Wood & Sands, 1978; Bagine, 1984). Calcium, magnesium, and potas-
sium are constituents of plant tissue, and the incorporation of saliva or faeces into the
building fabric may be the source of enrichment of these soil minerals (Bagine, 1984). In
addition Breznak et al. (1973) have demonstrated that termites of the species Coptotermes
formosunus are capable of fixing nitrogen. The mineral-rich soil of termite mounds is
widely eaten by pregnant and lactating women in sub-Saharan Africa, and Watson (1972,
1974b) uses the concentration of certain precious metals in termite earths as an aid in
prospecting.
Anderson & Wood (1984) suggest that the high mineral content of soil in the mounds of
soil feeding termites is due to the very high pH conditions to which the soil is subjected as it
passes through the termite gut. Calcium carbonate may be present as hardpan or nodules
at the base of termite mounds; Pomeroy (1976~) correlates this feature with a fluctuating
water table. Watson (1974u,b) suggests that calcium bicarbonate is carried in solution in
acid groundwater; calcium carbonate will precipitate when this charged groundwater
encounters the locally basic conditions in the soils within and beneath an active termite
nest. Calcification of nests above the water table may result from the migration of calcium-
rich groundwater upward through vertical water collecting tunnels (Sands, 1987).
The partially digested cellulose found in many termite nests contains tannins,
polyphenols, and lignin that can react with metallic ions in soil water (Sands, 1987).
Raunet (1979) stresses the importance of termites in the formation of the red friable iron-
rich soils in western Kenya. Whether they also contribute to the formation of true lateritic
duricrust has long been the subject of debate, some authors supporting this idea
(Nazaroff, 1931; Grasse, 1949, 1950; Ehrhart, 1951; Sys, 1955; Taltasse, 1957; Conrad,
1959; Tessier, 1959; Sands, 1987), others refuting it (Ap Griffeth, 1953; Boyer, 1958,1959;
Grasse & Noirot, 1959; Sillans, 1959; Lee & Wood, 1971~). Termites of the species
Anucunthotermes are thought to contribute to the formation of saline duricrusts in central
Asia (Valiakhmedov, 1979).
Maignien (1966) suggests that termites may contribute to the decomposition of lateric
crust, rather than to its formation, an idea supported by Lee & Wood (1971~). Boyer
(1959) outlines mechanisms whereby termites may be responsible for their burial, whereas
Josens (1983) notes that lateritic crusts provide suitable microenvironments for termites in
otherwise unsuitably arid habitats.

Chemical Properties and Bone Preservation

Termites alter soil chemistry, and their activities may influence the preservation or
disappearance of any bone present in the deposits. Termite mounds have a high organic
content in comparison with surrounding soils. The import of vegetable matter and water
raises the organic activity in the nest, and the warm and moist conditions favour high
levels of microbial activity (Watson, 19746). Members of the genus Mucrotermes con-
struct fungus combs of woody pellets within the nest (Lee & Wood, 197la). Other genera
make use of saliva, faeces, and partially digested cellulose as building materials.
There are a few cases in which termites have been found to lower the pH slightly in their
nests (Pathak & Lehri, 1959; Maldague, 1964; Lee & Wood, 1971~). Because high soil
124 S. McBREARTY

acidity is known to contribute to the dissolution of bone (Hare, 1980; White & Hannus,
1983), the action of these termites might be expected to slightly accelerate the already
formidable chemical weathering of bone found in much of the humid tropics.
Some termite species have no effect on local soil acidity (Lee & Wood, 1971a), but
others are known to raise the pH in their nests (Pendleton, 1941; Sen, 1944; Boyer, 1955,
1956; Hesse, 1955, Kemp, 1955; Nye, 1955; Sys, 1955; Gokhale et al., 1958; Robinson,
1958; Watson, 1962, 1967, 1975; Stoops, 1964; Lee & Woods, 1971a,b; Trapnell et al.,
1976; Arshad, 1977; Wood & Sands, 1978). An elevated pH contributes to an enhanced
microenvironment for bone preservation (Hare, 1980). Watson (1967) reports a mound in
an Iron Age graveyard in northeastern Zimbabwe which is presently inhabited by mem-
bers of both Macrotermes goliath and Odontotermes latericius. Human skeletons are
preserved in the alkaline soil beneath the mound, but do not survive in the surrounding
acidic soil.
Local chemical conditions favouring bone preservation may be short lived, however, as
they are dependent upon the lifespan of the colony and the mound. They are probably
offset by the physical effects of termite burrowing which contribute to bone dissolution.
Although termites may closely pack particles in nest walls, leaving little pore space, the
excavation of galleries greatly enhances overall soil porosity (Adamson, 1943; Boyer,
1958; Robinson, 1958; Ghilarov, 1962; Maldague, 1964; Lee & Wood, 1971~). Galleries
increase air circulation and permit the introduction of acid groundwater, accelerating
bone destruction.
Termites have also been observed to feed on carrion and to cause superficial bone
damage (Thorne & Kimsey, 1983). Behrensmeyer (1978) attributes damage to modern
bone in areas of nonalkaline soils north of the Amboseli basin in southern Kenya to
termites, although Hill (1987) notes that the minute surface indentations on the bone
observed by Behrensmeyer might have been produced by subterranean safari ants of the
genus Dorylus or by rootlets and soil acid.

Past and Present Microenvironmental Effects

Although the hardness of certain termite mounds discourages plant growth (Glover et al.,
1964; Watson & Gay, 1970), mounds in grassland regions often support a distinctive
woody vegetation. Wood & Sands (1978) suggest that increased moisture and mineral
and organic content, improved soil porosity and drainage, and protection from burning
are some of the factors involved in the creation and maintenance of the peculiar
termitensavannen first described for West Africa by Troll (1936). Periodic brush fires
maintain termite mounds as islands of woody vegetation in savanna environments
(Trapnell et al., 1976), which are used by many birds, reptiles, and mammals as vantage
points, nesting sites, or for shelter (Lee&Wood, 1978). The animals contribute their dung,
further enhancing the mounds’ organic content; they and the termites themselves may
transport seeds to the mounds (Owen, 1976).
These wooded mounds may have provided attractive microenvironments for hominids
on the Pleistocene landscape, and they may have been of particular importance during the
initial colonization of the savanna by forest dwelling hominids, who could have used them
as sleeping sites or retreats from predators. James (1989) and McGrew (1989) however,
caution that because termite mounds are visited independently by hominids and other
animals, associations between artifacts and fauna1 elements found at such localities may
be fortuitous. It has been suggested that smoldering tree stumps remaining on termite
mounds following brush fires may have provided early hominids with the opportunity for
their first experiments in the controlled use of fire (Clark et al., 1984; Clark & Harris,
1985).
 TERMITES AS POST-DEPOSITIONAL AGENTS 125

However, it is unlikely that the termitensavannen landscape existed prior to the modern
regime of regular grass firing, which is not thought to have been established prior to
600,000 years ago (Cerling, pers. comm.). Furthermore, it is not clear how the effects of
controlled use of fire are to be distinguished from the baked clay lumps, mounds, and clay
lined depressions which may result from natural burning of termite architecture.

Summary and Discussion

Termites are diverse and numerous and have occupied the tropics and subtropics of the
Old World for tens of millions of years. It is not difficult to surmise from the size, density
and lifespan of termite mounds in many areas of modern tropical woodlands and sav-
annas in sub-Saharan Africa that only a few thousand years are required for virtually all
the soil within a given area to be reworked by these insects. Their activities are responsible
for considerable alteration of textural, chemical, mineralogical, organic, and stratigraphic
properties of the soils they inhabit. Abandoned galleries at considerable depths in the soil
may become infilled with topsoil, calcified, and confused with archaeological features.
Objects of archaeological significance, such as stone artifacts or charcoal, may migrate
downwards through the soil profile. Fossil bone may be selectively preserved in locally
alkaline conditions within a termite mound, but ultimately the increased soil porosity
created by termites accelerates bone weathering in acidic tropical soils.
The dynamic nature of soils and archaeological sediments has been pointed out by
Wood & Johnson (1978), Villa (1982), and Villa & Courtin (1983). It is clear from the
evidence discussed here that Pleistocene sediments in the tropics and subtropics are indeed
open systems through which objects, including those of human manufacture, may move.
In an aggrading depositional environment, continual reworking of deposits by termites
beneath each succeeding landsurface may remove all traces of original sedimentary
structures. Clay and silt size particles brought by termites from depth effectively bury the
existing landsurface, which is subsequently obliterated by continued burrowing. Such a
succession of fine grained sediments stratified above coarser deposits may be wrongly
interpreted by the archaeologist as reflecting a shift to a lower energy depositional
environment.
The transport of soil particles and the excavation by termites of subterranean galleries
may result in either the vertical dispersal of an archaeological concentration, or the
creation of a concentrated artifact horizon from a formerly vertically diffuse scatter of
artifacts. Termite activity may disperse objects which originally lay on a buried land
surface through a considerable depth of deposit. Artifacts may simply tumble into the
larger galleries, and the excavation of numerous small galleries causes a lack of consoli-
dation which allows objects of different sizes and shapes to migrate downward at different
rates (Cahen & Moeyersons, 1977; Moeyersons, 1978).
Conversely, termites may concentrate formerly vertically diffuse artifacts, or effectively
collapse vertically discrete occupation levels. Artifactual or nonartifactural stone may
come to rest incavities in thedeposits which have beencreated by termites. Objects too large
to be carried by termites, such as sand, gravel, or stone artifacts, may migrate down through
the profile to the base of termite activity, which often corresponds to the water table. The
resulting concentration of stone may mimic an archaeological occupation surface.
The effects of either dispersal or concentration of artifacts are seen by Moeyersons
(1978) as a function of the amount of time that the material has been subject to reworking
by termites. According to his model, objects are first dispersed, then later concentrated at
greater depth. However, additional factors, including climatic or tectonic effects on local
water table, artifact size and shape, the nature of the sedimentary matrix, and the habits of
the particular termite species involved, must also be taken into account when evaluating
artifact distributions in tropical soils.
126 S. McBREARTY

Case Studies
The following sites show stratigraphic and sedimentary features which may best be
explained by the action of termites.

Salisbury burialground, Zimbabwe

A termite mound at an Iron Age site near Harare, Zimbabwe, has been described by
Watson (1967). About 2.7 m tall and 15 m in diameter, it is surrounded by a gently sloping
area of soil eroded from it [Figure 6(b)]. Only part of the mound is currently occupied; it
was presumably built by members of the species Macrotermes goliath, although indi-
viduals of the species Odontotermes latericius, which builds smaller mounds, now also
appear to occupy the edifice. Beneath it is a stone horizon, which lies slightly above the
level of the present water table [Figure 6(b)]. This is interpreted by Watson as the base of
termite activity.
Soil samples from within the mound were found to contain 22% clay, as compared to a
value of 7-8% for soil outside the mound, and an elevated pH of 6.2-7.5 as compared to
values of 4.8-54 outside the mound. Apparently the alkaline conditions of the mound
have contributed to the preservation of the skeletal material. Human bones are found at a
depth of several meters beneath the mound; they are not preserved in the acid soils
elsewhere at the site. The burials have been dated by radiocarbon to 670 + 100 and
800 k 60 bp (Goodall, 1962). Watson (1967) reports that animal bone from four localities
in the region which have been buried in the acid soil for 15-20 years show far greater states
of dissolution than the human bone from the burial ground. From this he concludes that
the mound has been in existence for at least as long as the human bones have been buried,
on the order of 700 years.

Laetoh’, Tanzania
Fossilized termitaria are reported from both the Upper and Lower Laetolil Beds at the
Pliocene site of Laetoli in northern Tanzania (Sands, 1987). They are abundant and
remarkably well preserved at five of the 23 fauna1 localities in the Upper Laetolil Beds,
occurring as both cast and matrix fossils of hard calcite and softer clay, sometimes
cemented within the eolian volcanic deposits. Branching, parallel-sided tubular structures
with oval cross sections from a few millimetres to several centimetres in diameter are
interpreted as Macrotermes foraging tunnels, although they lack the foraging pits
described by Darlington (1982) for M. michaelseni.
Ovoid masses are thought to represent Macrotermes queen cells. They consist of either
hard calcite or softer granular sediment, resting in a usually close-fitting cavity within the
surrounding matrix. Mean widths for two samples of ovoids in the lower part of the Upper
Laetolil Beds are given as 46.9 f 14.4 cm (N= 21) and 34.5 k 16.4 cm (N= 46); heights are
22.5 & 8.6 cm and 14.6 & 6.3 cm. They were found in some instances to rest on concave
circular baseplates about twice as large in diameter as the ovoids themselves, sometimes
with columnar structures around their rims.
Two well preserved shafted chambers resembling Macrotermes nests are described from
fauna1 locality 10 W. The first is a bell-shaped structure about 60 cm high and 1-Oto 1.2 m
in diameter encased in a calcite crust and topped by two vertical ventilation shafts about
65 cm high. The second, slightly smaller, is crowned with four ventilation shafts.
The same site yielded columnar masses of hard brittle calcite up to two cubic metres in
volume and 0.5 m thick and pierced by pores and tunnels. These bear a superficial struc-
tural resemblance to vesicular laterite, but are of course of entirely different chemical
composition. These resemble repair material found on live Macrotermes nests, which is
normally built only in small amounts. Studies by Ruelle (1964) and Weir (1973) have
 TERMITES AS POST-DEPOSITIONAL AGENTS 127

shown that when Macrotermes colonies are covered with plastic sheets, they respond to
the imposed heat stress by rapidly coverting the upper portions of their mounds from
closed to open ventilation systems [Sands, 1987; compare figures 2(a) and 2(b)]. Sands
(1987) postulates that at Pliocene Laetoli the natrocarbonatite ash falls, rapidly cemented
by rainfall, would effectively suffocate a termite colony, cause heat stress, and stimulate
colonies to the hectic repair activity which would result in such masses of repair material.
Using wet dust and plastic sheets, he attempted to replicate these conditions on several live
Macrotermes nests in Laetoli. Because the animals’ response was slight, Sands postulates
that the climate at Laetoli in the Pliocene was warmer than that of the present day.
Termite burrowing activity at Lot. 1OW about 1.0 to 2.5 m below marker tuBI, dated at
3.7 Ma (Hay, 1981), was quantified by observing the densities of tunnels and ovoid struc-
tures in vertical exposures; when plotted against depth they are found to have a bimodal
distribution, representing two peaks of activity beneath landsurfaces formed by successive
accumulations of airfall tuff. Using Hay’s (1987) sedimentation rates for the Upper
Laetolil Beds of 15-20 cm per 1000 years, Sands (1987) estimates that these two peaks of
termite activity span 4000-6000 years and 5000-7000 years, respectively, separated by a
period of 8000 to 10,000 years. Due to the high degree of temporal control provided by the
Laetoli chronology, Sands (1987) is able to compute densities of termitaria per 1000 year
slice of sediment; when corrected for expected longevity of a Macrotermes colony, his
estimate of 3.93 mounds ha-’ approximates densities in modern semiarid savanna
environments.

Bodo, Ethiopia
A number of mounds of burned clay have been described from Plio-Pleistocene contexts
in the Middle Awash Valley of Ethiopia (Clark et al., 1984; Clark & Harris, 1985). In some
cases, stone artifacts and fractured bone are found in the immediate vicinity of the struc-
tures; in other instances, there are no associated artifacts or bone. The question naturally
arises as to the respective roles of termites and hominids in their formation.
The features consist of cone-shaped concentrations of reddened clay between 40 and
80 cm in diameter and about 20 to 30 cm high. The clay forms irregular pellicules in some
instances; in others, particularly near the base of the cones, it is more massive. Small
discrete pellicules are found at distances up to 1.5 m downslope from the features.
Analysis of samples from Oldowan locality Bodo A-4 and Acheulian locality HAR-A3
confirm that the material is burned. The minimum temperature at which the clay had been
fired is estimated at 200” C on the basis of its remnant magnetism (Clark & Harris, 1985).
From the Middle Pleistocene locality at Bodo which has yielded cranial fragments of
Homo erectus (BOD-VP- l/l), about 400 m from the initial Bodo hominid find (Conroy ef
al., 1978; Kalb et al., 1980, 1982), Clark et al. (1984) report excavation of two of these
baked clay mounds. The features lie within dark clayey sediment which is interpreted as
overbank deposits. The concave bases of the excavated cones seem to resemble the fossil
Macrotermes baseplates described from Laetoli by Sands (1987), and interior “channels”
suggest termite activity. Colour varied from strongly reddened in the centre to yellow at
the periphery of the structures. Neither contained artifacts or bone, although both
materials occur on the surface in the vicinity.
These concentrations are interpreted as termite earth which surrounded a tree stump as
it burned (Clark et al., 1984; Clark & Harris, 1985). Clark & Harris (1985) suggest that the
fire may have been conserved or used by early hominids. This is an interesting idea, but one
that is difficult to test. There is no compelling reason to implicate hominids in the burning
of the sediments. Termite mounds are focal points of activity for primates as well as other
animals, and these islands of woody vegetation are subject to periodic natural bush fires.
128 S. McBREARTY

As James (1989) points out, the bones, stone artifacts, and baked clay at such localities
may not be in meaningful association.

Gombe Point, western Zaire

Gombe Point (formerly Kalina Point), first excavated by Collette (1931a), was used by
him and others (Menghin, 1925; Collette, 1931b, 1935; Mortelmans, 1957a,b, 1962a,b;
Clark, 1972) to illustrate a sequence of regional Paleolithic chronological stages.
Re-excavations by Cahen (1976,1978a) revealed that distinct artifactual units were indeed
discernible, and the site yielded a series of internally consistent radiocarbon dates. How-
ever, small termite galleries were observed in the deposits during excavation (Cahen &
Moeyersons, 1977), and refitting experiments demonstrated that 39 sets of stone artifacts,
many from different cultural levels, and vertically separated by as much as 1 m, were
conjoinable (Cahen, 1976, 1978a). Laboratory experiments performed by Cahen &
Moeyersons (Cahen & Moeyersons, 1977; Moeyersons, 1978) demonstrated that alter-
nate wetting and drying of the sandy alluvium and the weight of overlying sediments
produces only minor vertical artifact movement. Rather, they suggest that the sands at
sites such as Gombe, unconsolidated by termites, are in a constant state of collapse, with
the result that artifacts move preferentially downwards in the profile.

Karonga, Malawi
In the region of Karonga, near the western shore of Lake Malawi, a number of
archaeological occurrences have been described which are attributed to the Sangoan and
Middle Stone Age (Clark et al., 1970, 1972). The Chiwondo Formation here consists of
sandstones, siltstones, mudstones, and marls containing Plio-Pleistocene to Middle
Pleistocene vertebrate and invertebrate fossils (Haynes, 1970; Kaufulu et al., 1981). It is
overlain unconformably by the Chitimwe Formation, which is made up of sands and
gravels containing Middle and Later Stone Age artifacts. At the site of Mwanganda’s
Village the remains of an elephant were found together with stone artifacts on the weath-
ered surface of the Chiwondo Formation at its contact with the Chitimwe Formation
(Clark & Haynes, 1970).
Crossley (1986) has described laterally discontinuous sheets of red clayey sand which
cap the Karonga sequence. The sand sheets cover a very considerable area of about
8800 km2, and are found upon a variety of substrates. Usually they overlie gravels of the
Chitimwe Formation, but in some cases they cover Mesozoic or basement rocks [See
Figures 5(b), 9(b)]. These deposits are between 3 and 6 m thick in areas with slopes of less
than 3”, and they are clearly of terrestrial origin as in many cases they drape the local
topography [See Figure 5(b)]. They lack internal structure and are composed of 73-82%
sand, 12-20% clay, and about 7% silt (See Figure 7). Near horizontal lines of scattered
stone artifacts occur within these clayey sands [Figures 7 and 9(b)]; unabraded flakes from
the Chaminade locality have been found to be conjoinable (Clark et al., 1970; Crossley,
1986).
In the Chaminade area modern Macrotermes falciger mounds occur at a density of
24 haa2, and in active mounds Crossley has observed sediment particles of the Chitimwe
Formation which has been brought up from depths of at least 5 m. From the same locality
Crossley describes dome-shaped piles of clayey sand and carbonate concretions up to 3 m
high and 6 m across, which he interprets as fossil termitaria of the genus Macrotermes.
From these observations and the character of the sediments, Crossley reasonably
infers that these sand sheets are the product of termite deposition and are derived from
the underying levels. This clearly implies a lack of stratigraphic integrity for the
archaeological contents of the biogenic mantle, and suggests some disturbance of the
underlying deposits.
TERMITES AS POST-DEPOSITIONAL AGENTS 129

Figure 8. Structureless red clayey soil with stone line (arrowed) at Ober Awach,
South Nyanza District, Kenya. Artifacts eroding from the sediment have accumu-
lated as the lag deposit in the foreground.

Black cotton soil

LSA artifacts

MSA artifacts -
Structureless
Loterised sands - red clayey sand

LSA artifacts
Mudcracks -
Artifacts
MSA artifacts
Brown clayey sand
Grey clayey sands Carbonate nodules
E E
Iron pisaliths
ESA artifacts
Coarse sands 6 Gravel
Sangoan-Lupemban
artifacts
Grey sandy clay
Cloy lens with
artifacts
Conglomerate

Phonolite
(b)
(a)
Figure 9. Stratigraphic sections. (a) Muguruk, western Kenya (after McBrearty,
1988: 394, figure 3). Circled numbers refer to members of the Muguruk Formation;
(b) Chaminade site 2, Malawi (after Crossley, 1986: 193, figure 2).
130 S. McBREARTY

Muguruk, western Kenya

I have documented a Paleolithic sequence spanning Sangoan-Lupemban and Middle
Stone Age occupations at the site of Muguruk (McBrearty, 1986, 1988). Lying a mere
3 km north of the Winam Gulf of Lake Victoria, it is virtually “on the shores of Victoria-
Nayanza”, where Drummond (1888) has exhorted us to admire the termite’s toils.
The Muguruk Formation comprises about 12 m of fluvial sediments which exhibit a
fining upward sequence [See Figure 9(a)]. Member 4 of the Muguruk Formation can best
be described as a porous, dark red (Munsell5Y 7/4 and 5YR 5/4 dry; 5YR 5/6 and 5YR
4/6 moist) tropical soil with an angular blocky structure and no recognizable internal
microstratigraphy. It is presently about 3 m thick, but its surface is deeply eroded. It is
clay-rich, being made up 38% clay, 34% sand, and 27% silt, but because the sand fraction
is 50% coarse sand, member 4 has a fairly large mean grain size of 03.13 (c. 0.5 mm).
Figure 7 includes particle size data for a single sediment sample from member 4, which
appears to lack the very fine fraction present in the Karonga biomantle. Member 4 has a
high iron content, but no true iron duricrust; it does contain abundant reddish-black iron
pisoliths, and occasional isolated chunks of laminar ferricrete, which have not formed in
place but presumably have been introduced by fluvial or human agencies.
Member 4 is of archaeological interest because it contains a dense concentration of
Middle Stone Age artifacts (Pundo Makwar industry). They occur in densities which
exceed 250 pieces rnp2 area per 5 cm depth, and they are confined to a layer about 45 cm in
thickness about 1 m from the top of the stratigraphic sequence [See Figure 9(a)]. By
comparison with replicated experimental assemblages, it has been confirmed that smaller
artifacts have not been removed by fluvial winnowing (McBrearty, 1986). Nor is there any
preferred orientation or imbrication of pieces. Thus although attempts to conjoin artifacts
were not successful, upon superficial examination the industry would appear to have
retained its stratigraphic integrity, although no bone is preserved. However, at the begin-
ning of the rainy season in 1979 I observed a swarm of termite alates emerging from a small
gallery beneath artifacts in the archaeological trench itself. No other open galleries were
found in excavations at Muguruk, although mounds are common in the region.
A vertical concentration by termites provides an appropriate analog for the dense
accretion of Pundo Makwar industry artifacts in member 4, but in some respects the
Muguruk occurrence does not conform strictly to the model. First, the sediment under-
lying the archaeological occurrence is not coarser or more compact than that overlying it.
Second, the artifact horizon does not have the expected sharp lower contact. The upper
limit is distinct, but artifact densities fall off more gradually below it. And third, the
archaeological horizon is on a slightly larger scale than the termite produced “stone lines”
which have been described for Zaire by De Ploey (1964) and others, and which are
generally about 20 cm thick.
A number of factors are probably responsible for the conditions at Muguruk. First,
repeated human trampling on a sandy substrate can produce vertical dispersal of the order
of 20 cm (cf. Gifford-Gonzalez et al., 1985). Second, like Gombe Point, the fluvial sands at
Muguruk were seasonally inundated. This and the weight of overyling sediments may
have caused slight vertical artifact movement. And third, it is probable that termites have
altered vertical artifact placement. They may have caused artifacts to move down to this
level from above, and they almost certainly contributed to their dispersal below it.
The relative proportions of sand, silt, and clay for sediments overlying the artifact
concentration in member 4 at Muguruk do not correspond to those given by Crossley
(1986) for sediments accumulated by Macrotermesfalciger in the Malawi rift valley, which
contain a higher percentage of sand. The Muguruk sediments also lack the very fine
fraction of the Malawi biomantle. These differences may be explained by different species
of termites operating at the two sites, different parent material and weathering regimes,
 TERMITES AS POST-DEPOSITIONAL AGENTS 131

and perhaps differences in the amount of time represented. Most important is the fact
that the Muguruk sediments are probably not the exclusive result of termite sediment
turnover. At Muguruk, unlike Karonga, where the sediments are terrestrial in origin,
successive fluvially aggraded landsurfaces have been subject to reworking by termites.
In spite of this, it is interesting to consider that if the sediment mantle at Muguruk were
accumulated exclusively by termites, the time elapsed could be calculated from known
termite sedimentation rates. The most common genus of termites in the region is
Macrotermes; Nye (1955) estimates that M. bellicosus accumulates about 0.3 m of
sediment in 12,000 years. From studying photographs of Muguruk taken in the late 1930s
by the site’s discoverer, the Archdeacon Owen, I estimate that before removal of tree cover
initiated the current regime of acute erosion, the occupation layer in member 4 was
overlain by about 1.5 m of uniform clay- and iron-rich sediment. It would take termites of
the species M. bellicosus about 60,000 years to accumulate this thicknes of sediment. By
contrast, using sedimentation rates for rift valley margins calculated by Schwab (1976),
fluvial accretion alone could result in this depth of deposit in less than 9000 years.

Masango, Burundi
A Lupemban assemblage excavated at the site of Masango, in central Burundi, has been
described by Van Noten et al. (1972). The occupation lies at the summit of an isolated hill,
where decomposed granite is overlain by about 1.5 m of sands, silts, and clays which are
judged to be the product of in situ weathering. In the main excavation area (9 m*) an
artifact horizon, about 5-7 cm thick, was encountered at a depth of about 10 cm. This
horizon is overlain in other parts of the site by 15560 cm of silty sand.
The upper surface of the occupation layer was irregular, but its lower surface horizontal
and fairly regular. There was no preferred artifact orientation observed for the sample of
the excavation (1 m*) for which data were recorded. However, a number of circular,
artifact-free areas about l&20 cm in diameter were encountered in excavation. Artifacts
at their perimeters showed clear inclination toward the centres of the empty areas.
Artifact densities in this unit were extremely high, exceeding 800 pieces larger that 2 cm
in maximum dimension per m*. The artifacts include classic Lupemban points made from
quartzite and Lupemban debitage, artifacts that would be expected in a Lupemban con-
text. In addition, however, small numbers of quartz Later Stone Age artifacts were
encountered, together with small quantities of charcoal, which yielded radiocarbon dates
of 5270 and 4400 f 40 BP. No bone was preserved.
The presence of termites at modern Masango is well attested by direct observation.
Termitaria are found on the summit of the hill today; their density is estimated at 25
mounds lOOOm-*. In addition, large termite burrows were encountered within the
excavation itself. Artifacts rested obliquely at the margins of these cavities and on
occasion tumbled into galleries below /Van Noten et al., 1972, figure l(c)].
Not surprisingly, Van Noten et al. suggest that termites are responsible for the
disturbance of the archaeological and stratigraphic record at Masango. Disturbance of
the material is suggested by the mixture of Lupemban and Later Stone Age artifacts, and
by radiocarbon dates in keeping with a Later Stone Age occupation on charcoal
associated with Lupemban artifacts.
Termites are implicated as the disturbing agent by a number of lines of sedimentological
evidence. The thickness and density of the archaeological occurrence, as well as the
sharply demarcated upper and lower boundaries of the archaeological layer, are con-
sistent with those of “stone lines” created by termites. Although a detailed sedimentary
description is not given, it appears that the nature and thickness of the deposit overlying
the artifact horizon is in keeping with this interpretation. Additional support is lent by the
132 S. McBREARTY

clear presence of termites at the site today, and by the circular, artifact free areas in the
occupation layer which are surrounded by inclined artifacts; these appear to be fossil
termite galleries.
Diagnostic Features
The following features may alert the archaeologist that termites have been active: (1)
modern or fossil termitaria; (2) fragments of compact or vesicular construction material;
(3) baked clay lumps or clay lined depressions; (4) excavated foraging passages; (5) com-
plete absence of bone; (6) localized patches of bone preservation; (7) complete lack of
microstratigraphy; (8) a uniform, porous, clay rich soil mantle; and (9) vertically dispersed
artifacts; or (10) vertically concentrated artifacts.
Termitaria may be complete or fragmentary bell- or cone-shaped mounds constructed
of mineralized clayey sediment. They may be underlain by a basin-like depression and
crowned by a superstructure of tubular ventilation shafts. Internally, they are likely to be
pierced by passageways and nursery galleries; they may contain fragments of fungus comb
and a central oval cavity, the remains of the royal chamber. All of these excavated features
may be infilled with sediment, and the structure and its infill may be differentially
mineralized. The soil of the mound may have a high organic content, high pH, and may be
rich in compounds of Ca, Ph, Mg, K, N, and Fe. The mound may be underlain by a patch
of localized bone preservation, and this bone may exhibit superficial damage. The deposits
may show traces of woody vegetation and burning.
Layers underlying a termite nest can be expected to exhibit excavated cavities,
chambers, and galleries in various stages of collapse, and perhaps wholly or partially filled
with matrix from an overlying layer. Excavated foraging passages may extend for great
distances and may be open, infilled with sediment, or mineralized. Artifacts derived from
higher layers may be found within them. These passages can be distinguished from root
casts by their oval, rather than round cross-sections, their branching pattern, in which
passages may be directed upward, and by the fact that they do not taper toward their ends
(Sands, 1987).
Although relic termitaria may not be preserved in all cases, their cumulative effects can
be readily discerned. The classic profile of an ancient site in which termites have artificially
concentrated archaeological material can be described as follows: the artifacts are con-
fined to a uniform depth beneath a landsurface, either ancient or modern. This layer has
sharp upper and lower contacts and lies at the junction of a structureless, porous, clay-rich
layer with underlying, coarser, more compact sediment. It may be underlain by a layer of
calcrete nodules or hardpan. There may be traces of a localized woody vegetation, patches
of well preserved bone, or remnants of fossil or modern termite galleries. These features
may be associated with lateritic duricrusts. Where termites have dispersed artifacts
through a depth of unconsolidated deposit, they are frequently reconcentrated as lag
deposits by erosive forces. I have observed these conditions in the deep red lateritic soils at
many of the sites in the Lake Victoria Basin which were described by Leakey & Owen
(1945) in their early archaeological assessment of the region (See Figure 8).

Implications for African Archaeology

Clearly these observations have grave ramifications for archaeologists working in the
humid tropics. First, termites create pseudofacts. Their action combined with the effects
of natural brush fires may combine to produce features which mimic hearths of human
manufacture. The bases of the excavated burned termite mounds which Clark & Harris
(1985), describe at Bodo are concave, and if the upper portion of the mound were eroded
away, the resulting concavity lined with baked clay might easily be mistaken for a hearth.
Isolated clasts of baked clay when encountered in an archaeological context may be
 TERMITES AS POST-DEPOSITIONAL AGENTS 133

regarded as evidence for the controlled use of fire (e.g. Gowlett et al., 198 1). Scattered fired
clay lumps might easily be eroded from burned termite mounds such as those described by
Clark & Harris (1985), to be redeposited elsewhere.
Second, termites destroy or alter stratigraphy. They create an unstable landsurface
subject to collapse (Wood & Sands, 1978), and a biomantle through which artifacts may
migrate. Thus archaeological chronologies for equatorial Africa must be re-evaluated.
The work of Cahen (1976,1978a) at Gombe Point suggests that material from throughout
the Zaire basin which has been divided into chronological stages by workers such as Breuil
(1944), Breuil& Janmart (1950), Collette (1929, 1931a,b, 1935), Van Moorsel(1968), and
Mortelmans (1957a,b, 1962a,b) is not in reliable archaeological context. Crossley’s
analysis (Crossley, 1986) suggests that archaeological sites in the Malawi rift must perhaps
be looked at more critically before inferences about living floors and butchery sites can be
made.
Furthermore, these are not isolated phenomena. Crossley’s observations encompass
nearly 9000 km*, and the Kalahari sands that Cahen & Moeyersons (1977) conclude are
a reconsolidating sedimentary mantle continuously reworked by termites cover a vast
region of the southern Zaire basin. Therefore the Sangoan material from northeast
Angola described by Leakey (1949), Janmart (1947, 1953), and Clark (1963, 1966) may
owe the circumstances of its preservation to the action of termites. With the exception of a
few possible flaking floors described by Janmart (1953), the Angolan material is found
scattered as isolated specimens through many metres of fluvial and colluvial Kalahari
sands. From my own observations I know that many of the “Tumbian” (Sangoan-
Lupemban) artifacts from sites in western Kenya such as Yala Alego and Ober Awach
(Leakey & Owen, 1945) occur in similar contexts (See Figure 8).
Cahen (19786) has suggested that in light of the poor quality of our data, all artifactual
material postdating the Acheulian in Central Africa should simply be attributed to
“post-Acheulian industrial complex”. Cahen’s scheme would collapse several hundred
thousand years of human prehistory, from the disappearance of handaxes to the appear-
ance of iron working technology, into a single archaeological stage. His evaluation of
the state of Paleolithic archaeology in Central Africa seems overly pessimistic, but it is
undeniable that much informed careful work is required before even the outlines of
prehistory in this vast region of tropical Africa are clear to us.

Conclusions
Wood & Johnson (1978) observe that the use of the term in situ to denote undisturbed
artifacts may be more optimistic than realistic in many contexts. This is especially true for
tropical soils, where termites have been active for tens of millions of years. They produce
effects which may be interpreted by the unwary as the products of human behaviour or of
depositional or environmental circumstances at the time of occupation.
Clearly archaeologists have assumed a level of temporal resolution in their inter-
pretations of tropical Pleistocene remains which is rarely justified. Living floors which we
presume to represent brief instants of time may exist in the tropics, but they must be
carefully distinguished from the products of post-depositional concentrations by termites.
Living floors may be more rare in the archaeological record than archaeologists would
care to admit, but this does not mean that archaeological evidence can supply no
meaningful information simply because it does not conform to the narrow in situ model.
The method outlined by Schick (1986) for scoring sites according to degree of disturbance
seems a fruitful approach to the problem.
Perhaps in return for their wholesale destruction of stratigraphic evidence, termites
furnish new directions for future research. They selectively concentrate clay in locations
more likely to be subject to prolonged burning than other spots on the landscape.
134 S. McBREARTY

Paleomagnetic or thermoluminescence analyses of these sediments may yield chronologic

or environmental data which would otherwise be unobtainable. In rare preservational
circumstances, it may be possible to document the persistence of ancient landsurfaces
through the relative densities of termitaria through a sedimentary profile, as has been done
by Sands (1987) for Laetoli.
Sedimentary, chemical, and mineralogical analyses of termite architecture or termite
biomantles in archaeological contexts have the potential to provide paleoenvironmental
information, but the following cautions must be borne in mind: first, the temporal relation
of the termite activity to archaeological remains must be established, which in some cases
may be problematic, particularly if the termite traces have been substantially chemically
altered subsequent to burial (Cloud et al., 1980; Sands, 1987). Second, individual species
of termites may not be good paleoenvironmental indicators, as many have a wide toler-
ance for different environmental conditions. For example, Macrotermes subhyalinus is
found in habitats ranging from semiarid savanna, where it is a grass feeder, to moister
wooded regions were its diet includes leaf and wood litter (Sands, 1987). And third, it must
be appreciated that most tropical landscapes support sympatric species of termites, with
different body sizes, diets, and modes of nest construction, and that other soil fauna,
especially ants, are usually active in the same area.
In the end it is the task of the archaeologist to formulate research questions appropriate
to his or her data. In this he or she would be well advised to recognize that the sedimentary
features and artifact distribution patterns discussed here may result not from human
behaviour but from the labours of the humble termite.

Acknowledgements
I would like to thank Charlie Vogt (Department of Entomology, Museum of
Comparative Zoology, Harvard University), Andrew Hill (Department of Anthropology,
Yale University) and Ian Deshmukh (Associates for Rural Development and USAID,
Mogadishu), for reading and commenting on earlier drafts of this paper. I thank Bambi
Thorne (Department of Entomology, Harvard University), Jo Darlington (International
Center for Insect Physiology and Ecology, Nairobi), Robert Crossley (Robertson
Research), Dave Killick (Department of Anthropology, Harvard University), Mellisa
Remis (Department of Anthropology, Yale University), and Eleanor Sterling (Depart-
ment of Anthropology, Yale University) for useful discussion of termites and their habits
and for providing useful references. Richard Hay called the Laetoli fossil termitaria to my
attention, and Mary Leakey and Andrew Hill very kindly provided me with proof copies
of sections of the Laetoli monograph before publication. Research at Muguruk was
carried out with primary funding from the L.S.B. Leakey Foundation and the National
Science Foundation. Permission to carry out the research was granted by the Office of the
President of the Republic of Kenya, and sedimentary analyses were carried out at the
National Museums of Kenya, the University of Illinois, and Harvard University. For
kindly facilitating this aspect of the project I thank Richard Leakey, David Pilbeam,
Richard Hay, John Alexander, and Ann Kosobud.

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