Termite Formosan Termites

Identification of Swarmers:

Formosan termites swarm in huge numbers in late spring or summer; usually following a warm rainy day. They prefer to swarm in times of high humidity in the evening hours from dusk to midnight. The swarmers are attracted to lights and are about 1/25'', including wings. Their body color is pale yellowish brown. A fontanelle (frontal gland pore) is present.

The swarmers have four wings of equal size with dark hard veins in the front portion of the front wing. The wings are a translucent, slightly milky color and covered with tiny hairs.

Identification of Soldiers:

The armoured head of the soldier is rounded tapering toward the front. A fontanelle (frontal gland pore) is present on the soldier's forehead. They have large mandibles relative to their body, which is flat and narrower than the head. When disturbed the Formosan soldier termite may emit a white sticky latex substance from its fontanelle - a defensive measure to ensnare their enemies, primarily ants.

Auxiliary nests are often constructed in the food source, tightly filling wall voids or chimneys. Formosans are organized into huge underground colonies, and build intricate mud nests inside the walls of a structure.

Formosan subterranean termites can produce tightly packed, massive carton nests. Native subterranean nests generally are more loosely constructed and smaller.

Formosan termites are subterranean termites that typically live in the ground and a large mature nest will periodically emit swarmers in large numbers over a wide area to find a mate from another colony nest to start up a new colony. A suitable location for nesting should provide a constant moisture source and a readily available timber food source close by.

Like other termites, Formosan subterranean termites feed on cellulose. Cellulose is the major component in wood and paper products. Formosan subterranean termites attack the bases of poles, old tree stumps, or other wood in contact with soil. In addition to feeding on the wood in our homes, they have attacked more than 50 species of living plants, including citrus, pecan, wild cherry, cherry laurel, sweet gum, cedar, willow, wax myrtle, Chinese elm, pines, oaks, and maples. They can construct galleries to the upper stories of buildings to feed on the wood.

Formosan subterranean termites have also been known to attack (but not eat) non-cellulose material such as thin sheets of soft metal (lead or copper), asphalt, plaster, mortar, creosote, rubber, and plastic in search of food and moisture. However, their highly publicized ability to chew through concrete is a fallacy. Instead of chewing through the concrete, Formosan subterranean termites are uncanny in finding small cracks in concrete that they use as foraging routes.

Unfortunately, they are more vigorous and aggressive and successful than native termites. In fact, the Formosan termite has been called the "Super" termite because of its large colonies and its ability to consume vast amounts of wood in a relatively short time.

A mature colony of Formosan termites can number in the millions and consume as much as 13 ounces of wood per day. As a result, Formosans can severely damage a structure in as little as three months. Formosan termites are most visible during their annual mating flight. However, they actually cause more damage after the swarm is over. For this reason, it's extremely important to start a control program as soon as you find out that you have Formosan termites on your property.