Southern Drywood Termites
Order: Isoptera
Family: Kalotermitidae
Scientific Name: Incisitermes snyderi
The southern drywood termite, Incisitermes snyderi, is commonly found in the southeastern United States, including the states of South Carolina, Georgia and Florida, and west to southeastern Texas. Like the name implies, these non-subterranean termites infest wood with relative low moisture content and do not need to maintain contact with the soil. Drywood termites may infest structural timbers and framework, millwork (e.g., door and window framing), furniture, crates and other wood products.
Although
all drywood termite species are native to the South and West, they are
occasionally transported to other geographic regions in infested wood
products. For this reason, PCOs throughout the country should be familiar
with the tell-tale signs and damage from drywood termite activity.
Biology and Habits
The presence of excretal pellets is a tell-tale sign of a drywood termite infestation. These hard pellets have six distinct concave sides. Pellets vary in color from cream to red to black, and their ends are rounded. Pellets are cast out of the chambers as the workers enlarge their galleries.
The king and queen are nourished and groomed by workers. The soldier caste protects the reproductives and the rest of the colony from predators, especially predaceous ants. A colony is housed in a stump, a dead limb, a piece of furniture, or in a few adjacent structural beams.
Mature
colonies produce alates, or reproductives, which typically swarm in late
spring and early summer evenings.
Drywood alates are characterized by three or four veins in front
margins of wings, a hairless wing surface, and a tendency for cast wings
to reflect light prismatically (see illustration).
Control
Once a visual inspection has uncovered damage, fecal pellets or detached wings, steps to eliminate the drywood termites must be taken to avoid further damage. Determine if the infestation is extensive (multiple colonies) or confined to a limited area or single piece of furniture. If the colony limits can be determined and if the colony is accessible, apply a local chemical treatment such as insecticidal aerosols, liquids or dusts registered for wood treatment. Nonchemical treatments may include electrocution or exposure to lethal heat or cold.
When
drywood termite infestations are extensive or inaccessible, fumigation
will eradicate the pests. Both
methyl bromide and sulfuryl fluoride fumigants are registered for structural
fumigation when used with chloropicrin as a warning and clearing agent.
(Courtesy of the National Pest Control Association.)