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Don't Be A Victim Of Termites!
More About Termites. Usually once a year, a mature, healthy colony will produce new reproductive termites called "swarmers". The swarmers usually develop during the winter months. In the warmer months when enviromental conditions such as temperature, moisture and light are suitable, the workers construct "swarming castles" and usher the swarmers out for their mating flight. At times, large numbers of swarms occur within a given geographical area. This helps assure that the new reproductives have a greater opportunity to find members of different colonies so that inbreeding is minimized. Swarming usually occurs for approximately one - half hour. When conditions are less than suitable, an individual colony may swarm several times over several weeks, releasing only a portion of the swarmers each time. Termite swarmers are not strong fliers, but can be assisted by wind currents. Following a very short flight period, the swarmers come to rest, break off their wings at a special fracture point and attempt to locate a member of the opposite sex. Males follow females in an attempt to mate. Swarmers emerging indoors usually die within a few hours and are seldom successful in starting new colonies. An exception exists if sufficient moisture is found inside the structure. Swarms usually occur in the morning following a warm rain. Subterranean termite infestations may go unnoticed until a swarm occurs inside the structure. The presence of swarmers is a sign that a well - established colony is in the building. A male (King) and female (Queen) which find a suitable nest area - usually a ground contact beneath a rock or wood - create a chamber and the queen begins laying eggs. During the first season only a few dozen eggs are produced. The new workers begin enlarging the chamber and collecting cellulose for food. At this point, the abdomen (gaster) of the female begins to enlarge for increased egg production. The queen's role then is strictly to produce eggs. A mature queen produces 5,000 to 10,000 eggs per year. Within four or five years the colony is usually large enough for new swarmers to be produced and the cycle repeats itself. Although the scientific community is not sure exactly how long a queen lives, it is believed that a queen can live and reproduce up to 25 years. Swarmers inside a building do not indicate the termites have been in that building that long. The colony might have discovered the building during that season. If the original queen is eliminated or when larger colonies find new food sources that are somewhat remote from the primary colony, healthy colonies can form secondary reproductives. Secondary reproduction can also occur if large numbers of workers are cut off from the colony ( as through a repellant type chemical barrier ) and there is suitable moisture to support a new "satellite" colony. The satellite colony eventually becomes independent of the original colony. Under favorable conditions, each mature colony produces swarmers yearly. For reticulitermes, better known as, subterranean termites, large colonies may also produce secondary queens which may emerge with swarmers and start new colonies. Swarming may not occur every year if enviromental conditions are not suitable. Post treatment swarms can also occur. It is not uncommon for a colony to produce swarmers shortly after a soil treatment with a liquid termiticide. If this occurs, it usually happens within a few days and up to two months of the application. This response may be due to the increase in moister from the water in the termiticide solution or it may be in response to the treated zone as swarmers make a last - ditch effort to escape. However, swarms occuring more than two months after treatment usually indicates the treatment needs to be evaluated. Termites are social insects, which live in large colonies. There are three casts: reproductive, workers, and soldiers. Termite antennae have bead like segments. The winged reproductives (swarmers) have a pair of equally sized long wings that are attached to the last two thoracic segments. Termites feed on cellulose materials with wood being the most common source. They are also known to sometimes damage non - cellulose materials. Examples are pinholes in plastic pool liners and plastic coatings on electrical cables. Eastern subterranean termites can forage as far as 250 feet from the colony in soil. Normally workers do not expose themselves to light. If foragers must cross surfaces such as concrete, they build tubes between the soil and the food source to protect themselves from exposure to light and dry air. These tubes, (commonly refered to as shelter or mud tubes) are composed of soil particles cemented together with salivary secretions of the worker termites. If tubes are broken, they quickly repair them if they're being used. Broken tubes that are not repaired indicate the termites are not actively using those tubes at that time. Foraging termites consume cellulose material and either take it back to the colony or pass it along to other workers who transport it back. A long - standing myth is that termites go back to the soil every 24 hours, but this has not been substantiated. In fact, observations suggest that some workers may remain in the wood above grade for several days at a time. The exchanging of food among termites is called trophalaxis. This process permits the soldiers, young workers and the king and queen to receive food. The feeding rate of subterranean termites has been measured. Native species in a colony consisting of 250,000 workers can consume approximately 1 cubic foot of wood per year. Under normal conditions especially in the New England States less wood is consumed during a year as feeding slows during the winter months. Larger colonies can cause damage at a greater rate. Subterranean termites eat mostly the spring wood and leave the summerwood which they cannot effectively digest. Hence damage wood appears to be layered. Subterranean termites require contact with a moisture source. The soil is the normal moisture bank. Wood in which termites are working often contains up to 21 percent moisture in the termite galleries. Normal, dry wood in structures usually contains only 8 to 12 percent moisture. Termites bring wet mud into the wood galleries to regulate the moisture in their enviroments. When a repellant type termiticide is used to create a treated zone in the soil, termites in the structure die either from the lack of moisture or when contacting or crossing the treated zone to reach the colony in the soil. Subterranean termites trapped above grade following an application of a soil repellant termiticide can live up to two months after the treatment. If there is excessive moisture in the structure, this time may be prolonged. For more info on Termites, follow the links below.
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