Termites are a strange type of pest. Battling termites on your own or with termite control can be a difficult and expensive process. Understanding the behavior and actions of these pests can better help you understand what you’re up against and help you make decisions to defeat the problem and bring peace of mind.
Here at Green Pest Management, we see many of these traits when exterminating termites for customers in Delaware, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Maryland. Our customers with termite issues want a one-size-fits-all, safe solution that lets them get back to living their normal daily life.
Termites Cause Expensive Damage
Termites are not just invasive to your home, they damage communities and the country at large. The USDA estimates that termite damage has an economic cost between $1 billion and $7 billion per year for Americans, damaging homes, businesses, and wood. This includes repairs, treatments, property value loss, and likely doesn’t represent the full figure!
In local communities we operate in like New Castle, Delaware, we see customers who wait too long spending significantly more on termite treatments than those who act quickly. Your home, it’s value, and your costs are at risk if you wait too long for service. Contacting termite control, like Green Pest Management, is essential if you suspect termites or other pests in your home.
Subterranean Termites are Common on the East Coast
For areas on the East Coast that we service, such as Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Maryland, the most common species of termite is the Eastern subterranean termite. These are small but versatile insects that damage properties quickly. It is estimated that these termites are responsible for over 80% of all termite control spending in the United States, as mentioned in a University of Florida study.
While you may know termites such as African termites that build massive mounds, Eastern Subterranean Termites, which we fight in New Castle County, Delaware, build mud tubes. Our customers often see pencil-sized tunnels running up their foundations. One benefit of there being one type of termite in certain areas is that pest control companies like Green Pest Management have become experts at efficient and clear removal. Avoiding unnecessary damage is essential.
Why Termites Cause Damage 24/7/365
- Workers in the colony build up the nest, groom one another, tend to eggs, and gather food.
- Soldier termites are much larger and have hard bodies. They protect the colony from outside predators.
While you rest and dream, termites are doing what they do best: breaking down wood… and hopefully away from your property.
Identifying a Termite Colony: Workers vs Swarmers
Termite colonies have a caste system, meaning each caste has a different role. The queen decides who goes with her pheromones and by what she feeds them. As mentioned before, worker termites build new parts of the colony. Worker termites are born sterile or are immature and therefore cannot reproduce. This ensures worker termites won’t need to change jobs. Worker termites build the nest by using clay, spit, and feces. They tend to eggs, and they are also the only termites of the colony that eat, so they gather food for themselves. Soldier termites get much larger and protect from ants, centipedes, cockroaches, lizards, and frogs, which are all threats to a termite colony. They all have much harder bodies and mandibles to ward off their enemies. The queen of the colony is very large. You can easily pick her out from the rest, though you will likely never see her. Much like bees, she lays thousands of eggs per day.
Termite Queens
Termite queens can lay up to 15-25 eggs per minute. That is 40,000 per day! Which equals 10 million per year. Termite queens never stop laying eggs. Unfortunately, queens are not the only reproducers. Immature worker termites will start reproducing and leave their original colony. This often results in new, larger colonies next to the initial nest. Oftentimes, they can also replace the queen, which only creates more eggs. Usually, both colonies leave one another alone until their tunnels intersect, and they accidentally invade. In that case, the colonies go to war.
Termite colonies are massive!
Considering that termites spend 24 hours a day building a colony, one would expect it to be large. Queens lay 10 million eggs per year, and only a small percentage survive. But a “small percentage” from 10 million isn’t a small amount. The biggest nest ever recorded had 3 million termites all at once, surviving inside. Normally there are only 1 million termites per nest. You can see why termite control can be a difficult process. Termite colonies are usually built underground, like the subterranean termites we find in areas where Green Pest Management services (Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Maryland) but occasionally termite nests can be built above ground.
Termite mounds can be built upwards
Certain termite species build their colonies upward. Nasutitermes triodiae (also known as snouted harvester termites) are a grass eating termite. They can also be referred to as spinifex termites, since they are found in the spinifex grasslands in Australia. These termites hold the world record of the tallest termite mound, standing at 42 feet. We aren’t totally sure why they build upwards. It has been studied that they have evolved in a similar way we did. They once lived in treetops, and evolved to eat grass, and build on the ground. Still today, these termites connect their nests to trees, poles, and build inside of trees.
Flying Ants vs. Termites: How to Tell the Difference
Ants are the number one predators of termites. Ants can take over a food source and will use it to starve out termites. When colonies are built too close together, it creates costly turf wars. Though termites are far larger than ants, ants are far more aggressive than termites. They will invade termite nests, kill soldiers, and then the queen. Without the queen, there is nothing to replace workers and soldiers. Without soldiers, there are no defenses for the rest of the nest. No colony defenses means that other predators get in more easily.
| Feature | Flying Ant | Termite Swarmer |
| Waist | Pinched (hourglass shape) | Thick / Broad (no waist) |
| Antennae | Bent (like an elbow) | Straight / Beaded |
| Wings | Front wings are longer than back wings | All 4 wings are equal length |
| Behavior | Swarms in Summer | Swarms in Spring (March-May) |
Termites are responsible for 3% of all methane emissions globally
It takes a very strong stomach to digest wood. Termites release 150 million tons of methane gas per year. Though they produce massive amounts of methane, they are very important to the forests. Termites eat dead and fallen trees, which clears the floor of duff and also enriches the soil for further growth. Without them eating and building, the forest floors would be littered with dead and fallen trees. Which also means forest fires would be more destructive, and it would be much harder for new growth to begin in the forest.
Termite damage can spread throughout a home quickly
Termite nests are large already, and when they expand to your home, it can be extremely expensive. Most termites’ diets require cellulose, a compound found in wood. Wood can be found throughout a home. Railing, wooden cabinets, supports, and a hardwood floor. Without support, the home cannot stand properly. Termites can destroy the underside of laminate flooring, which can cause sagging and holes in your kitchen floor. Hence, termite control can be critical to your property.
Here at Green Pest Management, we are here to help you with your termite control or any other pest control problems. We inspect and treat, making sure your home or business doesn’t suffer from termite damage. To find out about our termite control options, contact us here. We are happy to help!