Subterranean termites collectively navigate tunnel networks

Collective transport in confined networks poses a significant challenge for living systems. Subterranean termites (Coptotermes gestroi) navigate and construct narrow (1–2 body widths) mud tunnels composed of branching paths, loops, and dead ends. We investigate how the soft-bodied C. gestroi mitigates congestion in self-built networks through body compliance and local mechanosensing. Using controlled 3D-printed arenas that replicate natural tunnel morphologies, we quantify termite velocity distributions, turning probabilities, and contact-mediated collision events as functions of density and tunnel width. We identify behavioral strategies that contribute to both collective transport and the morphogenesis of tunnel networks.