• Termites have been found across 70 percent of the world and have survived environmental changes for more

than 250 million years, adjusting to most any climate.

• Termites are found in every state in the United States except Alaska.

• Termites feed on cellulose, which can be found in high moisture wood.

• Americans spend more than $5 billion every year treating for termites and repairing the damage they cause.

• Termite damage can go undetected for years.

• Termite damage is not covered by most homeowners’ insurance policies.

• Some termite species need only a space one-sixteenth of an inch wide – the thickness of a piece of paper –

to enter a home.

• Signs of a termite infestation include wood damage, such as small holes in wood; crumbling drywall; sagging

doors; swarms of termites (usually occurring in spring); and piles of discarded wings.

• There are five major types of termites throughout the United States: Eastern Subterranean termites, Western

Subterranean termites, Desert Subterranean termites, Formosan Subterranean termites and Drywood termites.

on termite prevalence by state. Simply click on any state to find out what types of termites are active.

• Drywood termites live in dry, sound wood, deriving their moisture requirements from the wood they consume.

• Drywood termites do not need a connection to soil. They construct large, irregular tunnels that run across the wood grain, connected by openings small enough for one termite to pass through.

• Drywood infestations can occur in structural timbers in buildings, pieces of furniture, flooring, doors and doorframes, window trim, wooden picture frames and other isolated pieces of wood.

• There are often multiple Drywood termite colonies in one structure and colonies can contain a few thousand members.

• The definitive sign of Drywood termite feeding is their fecal pellets–hard, elongated-oval pellets with rounded ends and six concave sides–which are ejected from the galleries found within the damaged wood.

• Approximately 400 global species of Drywood termite species are known, but only a few species are important in the United States.

• Formosan Subterranean termites threaten homes and other structures in Hawaii and southern continental

United States.

• Originally from mainland China, Formosans have been in the United States approximately 50 years.

• They are more vigorous and aggressive than native termites, and have been known to displace native

populations.

• The Formosan termite has been called the "Super termite” because of its large colonies and its ability

to consume wood in a relatively short time.

• A mature Formosan termite colony can number in the millions, consume as much as 13 ounces

of wood per day, and can severely damage a structure in as little as three months.

• A Formosan colony can forage an area more than one acre in diameter.

• Soldiers comprise about ten percent of the colony.

• Formosan subterranean termites are most visible during their swarming or mating.

• Formosans are typically active in the evening and later in the year (May-June) than native termite species.

• Formosan queens can produce 1,000 eggs a day.

• As Formosans infest a structure, they use soil and wood cemented together with saliva and feces to build

hard nests called cartons. These can be located in trees or within walls.

• Large cartons can actually cause walls to bulge.

• These nests can house thousands of termites as well as provide moisture to the colony.

• Once established, colonies can live without direct soil contact.

• Formosan termites can also infest, damage and possibly destroy otherwise healthy trees.

• The Termite Institute™, online at www.TermiteInstitute.com, features an interactive map with localized information

• Western Subterranean termites are the most common and most widely distributed termites in the western half of

North America, reaching from British Columbia in Canada, south to western Mexico and east as far as Idaho and

Nevada.

• Western Subterraneans can enter structures through cracks less than one-sixteenth of an inch wide, including

the minute openings found in concrete slabs, around drain pipes, and between the slab and the foundation.

• Colonies are usually located in the ground below the frost line, but above the water table and rock formations;

secondary colonies can exist above ground if there is a constant source of moisture.

• Western Subterranean termites will often build shelter tubes, referred to as mud tubes, for travel between their

colonies in the soil and their food sources, so that they can avoid the light.

• Damage caused by Western Subterranean termites is most commonly found in the basement and at ground

level, although the termites will attack wood at higher levels.

• Development from eggs to adults may take more than five months, and workers can live up to three to five years.

• Research has shown that populations are higher in urban areas than in undeveloped habitats. These termites

prefer soil temperatures between 84° to 90° F, never above 104° F.

• Western Subterranean swarms may occur four or more years after a colony is first established, during daytime

hours—warm, sunny days during the fall, winter or early spring in California, and spring swarms during the

absence of rainfall in the northern sections of the termites’ range.

information on regional termite prevalence. Simply click on any state to find out if Western Subterranean

termites are active there.