Termites can and often do nest in Trees

Termites live in a community where there are several castes that all live together and each termite relies upon others for its very existence. They are similar to many other communal species of insect in their need for shelter, food and water. Today I will discuss shelter, a site to house the entire colony. Depending upon the age of the colony they may need a cavity the size of a football or they may need one much larger. A mature Coptotermes spp termite nest can contain up to two million residents, not all of them will be at home at any one time as they are 24 hour shift workers, but this will still demand a large area in which to house those termites carrying out duties such as looking after the young, tending and protecting the Queen, and those that are distributing food.
Often an area of around .5 of a cubic metre is found to be the area that the colony is inhabiting.
All Termite colonies start from a humble beginning of just two residents, the King and Queen, at the start they do not require a very large home but as their colony grows they must provide a larger premises or risk not being able to keep a healthy colony. Initially the colony may be housed at the base of a small tree, underground and not taking up much space. As the colony grows the workers can start to hollow out the heartwood of the tree which is in fact dead timber. The heart wood is a perfect food source and as the termites excavate it they are in fact able to extend the colony to fit into the space.
Trees are by no means the only place that termites can nest, they will be opportunistic and nest in any area resembling a hollow tree. This may be a small area such as a wall cavity of a house, or a large area such as the sub floor area of a fully enclosed patio. As long as the termites are able to ensure that they will be able to keep high humidity, are relatively safe from marauding ants and other creatures and are within striking distance of food.