Drywood Termites

Sometimes called white ants, Drywood Termites upon closer examination do  resemble ants  in appearance as well as within their social systems. One difference is the termite colony contains and queen and a king, and the several of the caste members are sterile. Unlike their counterpart the Ground Termite, the Drywood Termite works very much in secret, hiding deep into wood and is hard to detect.

Drywood termites can be found in forests decimating trees. Unlike the ground termite, the drywood termite does not need a lot of moisture to survive, nor does the drywood termite need soil.  There are three species of drywood termites and they live and feed in wooden furniture, in trees, inside buildings or old logs.

A drywood termite nest is begun by a male and female, they eat their way into the wood and start designing chambers and interconnecting tunnels. As the colony grows the numbers can reach into the thousands, but not into the millions like the ground termites. All the chambers and tunnels are kept meticulously clean. Any waste or debris is collected and pushed out of kick-out holes. The debris that includes the "frass" or the drywood termite waste material is one way to find these elusive pests.

Because their numbers are substantially lower than the ground termites, the drywood termites do not have the ability to do as much damage, but their presence can severly compromise structual integrity.

Pest Control Tips for dealing with Drywood Termites:

It is advisable that you seek a professional pest control company first to find the nest, and second to get rid of it. Drywood termites are extremely tough to locate, and some of the tools used to find them are dogs trained to sniff out termite trails.

The pest control company will most likely recommend fumigating your home if drywood termites are located.  There are spot- on treatments available if the infestation is small, but structural fumigation needs to be done by licensed and qualified personnel due to the poisons being used.