7/28/2019 What Bugs Hawaii: Termites
1/1
>> H O N O L U L U S T A R - A D V E R T I S E R >> T H U R S D A Y 5 / 3 0 / 1 3
GREAT LOCATION FOR INFESTATION
Hawaiis year-round warm weather allows one of the worst insect pests in theworld to infest all of the Hawaiian islands. All species here use wood as a foodsource with the help of micro-organisms in their digestive systems. The twomost destructive are:
>> Formosan subterranean termite: Lives primarily underground andmoves up into structures or trees to feed. Because Hawaii is so warm
and humid, it is likely to swarm any time during the year.>> West Indian drywood termite: Lives in wood at or above ground level. Itswarms at night in the summer.
Sources: University of Hawaii at Manoa; College of Tropical Agriculture & Human Resources; www.termiteweb.com; www.environcontrol.com/termites
HUNGRY HOME HAZARDSGRAPHIC BY DAVID SWANN STORY BY JIM BORG
Left unchecked, termites lit-erally can bring down thehouse. Of the eight species inHawaii all of them alien in-vaders two do the mostdamage: the Formosan subter-ranean termite and the West In-dian drywood termite.
Both have been long estab-lished in Hawaii, allowing forlarge colonies, says J. KennethGrace, an entomologist withthe University of Hawaii Col-lege of Tropical Agriculture andHuman Resources.
A mature colony of 3 millionsubterranean termites eats ap-proximately 1 pound of woodeach day, or about a 1-footlength of a two-by-four, saysGrace.
Methods of fighting the For-mosan termite, Coptotermesformosanus, include the use ofpreservative-treated wood in
housing construction, treat-ment of the soil with an insecti-cide, and physical barriersmade of basalt or wire mesh.Soil treatment with an insecti-cide or termite baits such asthe Sentricon system are the
usual control measures when abuilding is infested.
The West Indian drywoodtermite, Cryptotermes brevis,also found all over the world,spreads easily in furniture andin shipping pallets. Sincedrywood termites livedirectly in wood, controlis focused above ground, withfumigation the most effectivemethod.
The third most damaging ter-mite is the Asian subterraneantermite, Coptotermes gestroi.
We found it in 1999 in a ter-mite survey of Oahu, and as faras we know it is only found atthis point on Oahu, in the areasof Kalaeloa, Ewa Beach andMakakilo, says Grace. Hawaii,Taiwan and southern Floridaare the only spots where bothspecies of subterranean termitecoexist.
Two of the other eightspecies have been long estab-lished in Hawaii but usually at-tack wood in the forest ratherthan in houses. And the othershave not been here longenough to become big pests.
WHAT BUGS HAWAII
Formosansubterraneanworker termite
ChambersWhere
nymphsand food
are stored
GalleriesPaths cut across
wood grain ascolonies expand
Kick holesTiny openings
for ejectingfecal mattercalled frass
THE TERMITE COLONY
Both subterranean and drywood termite coloniesare cooperative groups made up of decentralized
nesting and feeding sites called chambers. Thesesites are connected by tunnels called galleries.
THE ANATOMY OF A TERMITE FOR INFESTATION
Antenna
Mandible
Alate (swarmer)Young, wingedreproductivesof both sexes
Reproductivecaste
Soldier casteDefends the nestwith powerful jawscalled mandibles
Worker casteSterile, winglessand blind, theybuild nests andfetch food
King and queen termiteThese are the main repro-ductive individuals in a colony;the queen can lay manythousands of eggs per day
Eggs
LarvaHatches directlyfrom the eggs
NymphMolts from larvawithin two weeks
Actual size 1/5
Worker
Alate King Queen
West Indiandrywood soldier
Formosan subterraneansoldier
Head
Thorax
Abdomen
Legs
THE
TERM
ITE
LIFE CYC
LE INCLUDESTH
REEDIFFERENTCASTES
WHAT TO DO WHEN TERMITES STRIKE
The fundamental strategy to avoid costly termite damage is preventive man-agement through regular, professional inspections. When termites are found ina building, options for remedial control vary with termite type.
>> Drywood termites: Can be controlled with spot treatments, which can becost-effective if the damage is fairly localized. If the damage is extensive, whole-struc-
ture fumigation (tenting) may be required to effectively combat the infestation.>> Subterranean termites: Infestations frequently involve creating chemical or physical
barriers where the structure meets the soil. Termite baiting can both monitor and con-trol subterranean termites.
HAWAIIS OWN
There are eight species of termites in Hawaii:
>> Lowland tree termite>> Large forest tree termite>> Indo-Malaysian drywood termite>> Western drywood termite>> Pacific dampwood termite>> Asian subterranean termite>> Formosan subterranean termite>> West Indian drywood termite
DealateAlates that cast their wings
and turn into kings and queens
The twospecies
have been in Hawaiifor more than 100 years.
They cause more than$100 million in
damage per yearto structures.
BY THE NUMBERS
1 million+
45
2,800
4,000
Number of termites in a colony
Number of years a queen can live
Number of known species worldwide
Number of estimated species worldwide
20,000 to 30,000 Number of eggs a queen can lay per day
Termites are one of Hawaiis
worst pests in terms of the
damage they cause
Top Related