Get to know your enemy in depth

Termites are social insects that live in nests. They are a highly organised pest group that have four different types of members in any given colony; this includes:

• termite workers
• termite soldiers
• termite nymphs
• kings and queens, and future king and queens.

Termites typically forage for timber as food but unfortunately we humans have built our homes in their environment, so they see the timber structures of our homes as an ideal food source that is ripe for the picking.  Each type of termite has a role to play in the colony:

• The king and queen of each colony are responsible for the reproduction for the colony.
• Workers forage for food; leaving the nest they source food from wood fibres but their food can also be materials such as cardboard, paper, wallpaper and any other source containing cellulose.
• In nature termites will forage in bushland for fallen logs or dead timber.
• Termites like our homes as they are an ideal environment that caters for their three essential elements: food, moisture and warmth – the ultimate combination.
• Most homeowners will not notice termites until they have caused actual structural damage to the home.
• Termite damage can go undetected until it is too late; this is because termite entry is often hidden and timber is eaten from the inside.

Extensive termite damage.

Termite damage is often hidden.

 

1. Termite worker
2. Termite soldier
3. Future king or queen nymph
4. Future king or queen.

Precision Pest Control Sydney – timber borers in Maroubra

Precision Pest Control has local operators in Sydney and surrounds, Canberra, Newcastle and the Central Coast in NSW, as well as the Sunshine Coast down to Brisbane in Queensland.

In this video, check out a pest inspection in Maroubra, in Sydney's east, where during a pest inspection, borers were discovered. They may not have been termites but this underlines the importance of regular inspections from professional pest controllers!