Chic African Culture Africa Factbook

Did you know?

1. No African country names begin with the letters F, H, I, J, O, P, Q, V, W, X, or Y.

2. Africa is surrounded by water but by definition Africa is not an island because Africa is a continent.

3. The Republic of the Congo is one of the most urbanized countries in Africa.

Inside Giant Termite Mounds of Africa

Mound building termites of East, Central, and Southern Africa can serve as an oasis in the African desert to plants by replenishing the soil.


Mound building termites of East, Central and Southern Africa can serve as an oasis in the African desert to plants by replenishing the soil.
Giant African Termite Mounds

About Giant African Termite Mounds

Queen termites can live up to decades under ideal climate conditions. Giant mound-building termites are a group of termite species that live in mounds and look like whitish brown grains of rice with big heads and hedge-trimmers for mouthparts.

According to the New York Times “Researchers at Princeton University and their colleagues recently reported in the journal Science that termite mounds may serve as oases in the desert, allowing the plants that surround them to persist on a fraction of the annual rainfall otherwise required and to bounce back after a withering drought.

”By poking holes or macropores, as they dig through the ground, termites allow rain to soak deep into the soil rather than running off or evaporating. They’re the ultimate soil engineers,” said David Bignell, a termite expert and emeritus professor of zoology at Queen Mary University of London. Termites all belong to the phylum Arthropoda, the class Insecta, and the order Isoptera. There are over 2,000 different species of termites. 

Termites are extraordinary engineers, capable of building mounds standing as tall as 40 feet high and 60 feet wide and continue to build on the same mounds for centuries. Termite mounds can take four to five years to build from the termites’ saliva, dung and surrounding soil.

Inside the termite mound is an extensive system of tunnels and channels that serve as a ventilation system keeping the internal temperature relatively constant. Like most social insects such as ants and bees, termites live in societies where the collective power of the group surpasses that of the individual termite.

Mound-building termites live in Africa, India, Australia, and South America. Only a few of them 3,000 or so known termite species are pests to people moreover, the mound-building termites of East, Central, and Southern Africa can serve as oases in the desert to plants by replenishing the soil.

Together we build awareness that boost harmony, education, and success, below are more links to articles you will find thought provoking.

  1. African Country Names Your Saying Wrong
  2. About African Healers and Witchdoctors
  3. Hurricanes are Angry African Ancestors
  4. Highest Temperature and Lowest Temperature in Africa
  5. About African Night Running


Chic African Culture and The African Gourmet=

Africa is surrounded by water but is not an island, here are a few African Island facts.

Madagascar is the 4th large island in the world and is located in the Indian Ocean supporting a unique biology, about 90% of its plants and animals are found nowhere else on earth.

Composed of 155 islands, Seychelles is Africa's smallest country. By far the largest island is Mahe, home to about 90% of the population and the site of its capital city of Victoria.

Cabo Verde has a strategic location 310 miles or 500 km from the west coast of Africa near major north-south sea routes; important communications station; important sea and air refueling site.

Africa is surrounded by water but by definition Africa is not an island because Africa is a continent. Continents can not be considered islands because of their size and also by historic definition since many people who study geography define islands and continents as two different things.

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African cultures express, encourage, and communicate energy

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Being African in America I have grown up learning about different ethnic cultures. My father and mother are historians of African culture and history and their influence expanded my activities to several best-selling cookbooks, magazine columns, self-branded products, and a popular African culture and food blog.

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Be better than average and support African history and culture. Since 2008 Chic African Culture and The African Gourmet highlight Africa through her food and culture. Contact us culture1africangourmet@gmail.com

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