The Silent Destroyers: How to Spot a Termite Infestation

Author: Emma Grace Crumbley, Entomologist

Of all the pests people may find in their homes, termites are some of the most concerning. Termites are small, soft-bodied insects that feed on cellulose and create structural damage to the wooden supports and foundations of the buildings they infest. In nature, termites are important decomposers of decaying wood on the forest floor. But in infrastructure, termites cause over $5 billion in damages every year. And the worst part of a termite infestation? They do this damage silently.

Because of their small size, termite colonies are not fast when it comes to chewing through a home. According to the Structural Pest Control Board, the leading experts in wood-destroying organisms, termite infestations may go months or years before being detected. All the while, termite colonies are growing, eating, and moving through the home, weakening the structure and causing irreparable damage.

Therefore, it’s crucial to be aware of the tell-tale signs of a termite infestation, especially as we head into spring (you’ll see why in the following sections).

Signs of Termite Activity

Most of the major species of termites that infest homes reside underground in areas with high moisture. Subterranean termites, aptly named for their below-ground dwellings, infest homes through the lowest possible entry points in a home's foundation. Settlement cracks in concrete, voids in building materials, and gaps between the bottom-most flooring and the home are a few of the places these termites use to enter a structure.

I mentioned earlier that termites are soft-bodied, which becomes extremely important as they try to infest a structure. While other insects have harder, waxier exoskeletons, termites have a thin exoskeleton membrane. This means that dry, hot climates will dry out and kill termites. To keep themselves safe as they enter a structure, termites will build mud tubes from the ground up the sides of walls to retain moisture and humidity as they forage for food. If you suspect you have a termite problem, check your basement, crawlspace, and the outside of your home for vertical mud tubes.

Other signs of termite activity may include seeing termite droppings, which look like small wooden pellets. Termites like to keep their colonies clean and galleries free of debris, so they create "kick-out holes" to expel waste and droppings. Around the home, this may look like small piles of sawdust or pellets next to holes in the wall.

Swarming

The most obvious sign of any pest infestation is seeing the pest itself. In the case of termites, most of the colony will never leave their nests. However, some colony members will emerge, and their swarming season almost always starts in the spring.

Termites are social insects, similar to ants, but genetically unique. The social hierarchy of termites places individual colony members into one of three categories: workers, soldiers, and reproductive. Worker termites and soldier termites are sterile and serve to protect the colony, create galleries in wood, repair mud tubes, and take care of larvae. The reproductive termites, also referred to as alates or swarmers, are the only members that can mate and populate the colony. The king and queen termites are the primary reproductive members, and they usually reside underground. However, other reproductive termites emerge from the colonies in the spring, summer, and sometimes fall to mate and fly off to start new colonies.

Termite swarms are a critical sign of not only a termite infestation but a severe one. If you don’t see the flying, winged termites in action, look for signs of a prior swarm: wing fragments, dead individuals, and nearby damaged wood.

Carpenter Ants

It's important to tell the difference between termites and carpenter ants, another wood-destroying pest that also happens to swarm in the spring. Though their galleries and damage may look similar to termites', their antennae, bodies, and coloration are much different. Carpenter ants are physically larger than termites, and they have the signature "wasp waist" that ants, bees, and wasps all share. These ants also have elbowed antennae, and their winged adults will be dark-colored.

If you see flying ant-like insects but cannot tell if they are termites or carpenter ants, take a picture of them or save a few of the insects in a plastic bag and contact a pest control professional like the techs at Mosquito Squad. Do not wait to report these pests – the longer you wait, the more damage they will continue to do.

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