If you ever see a large group of winged termite swarmers heading your direction prepare for war. No, not really, but if you do find termite swarmers in or around your house you should take heed.
You might want to call a termite professional to come to assess the situation, but it’s not always required.
If you simply find flying termites leaving a dead tree or stump in your yard, chances are they won’t make their way into your home. However, if they find a crack or crevice, the swarmers can get in and establish a new termite colony in your home.
Finding termite swarmers in your house means they are either attempting to enter your home and create a colony are have already had their fill of cellulose from the lumber that your home is constructed out of and are now heading out.
If swarmers have already found a way into your home (and established a colony) then you should be able to find other signs of termite activity. For example, drywood termites leave piles of their excrement pellets (also called frass).
If you find termite droppings in your home, unfortunately, you’ve found solid evidence that a termite colony has already been present or still present in your structure.
We explain some more about what termite swarmers are, what they’re attracted to, and how you can prevent drywood swarmers from entering your home or buildings.
Understand What Termite Swarmers Are Doing In Your Home
No frass detected? You may be in luck and only experiencing the initial attempt of a new colony which is relatively easy to defeat compared to exterminating an established colony and repairing what could be extensive damages.
Also, keep in mind that other types of wood-eating insects leave behind frass piles such as the powder-post beetle so do not immediately jump to the conclusion that you have termites.
If you are lucky enough to catch a glimpse of one of these critters try to catch a few and put them in a jar so you can show an exterminator or refer to our picture gallery to get a better idea of whether or not you have termites if and if so what kind you have.
Remember termites are often referred to as “white ants” because when they are in their younger stages of life they have no wings. A noticeable difference is that most termites only have two sections to their bodies.
This is easy to distinguish against most ants who have three body sections. Also, adult termites usually have four wings (two pairs) that are all identical in size and their body shape is straight when compared to an ant that has a more pinched waistline.
A professional exterminator can help quickly identify what kind of insect has infested your home and then provide you with effective pest control measures to exterminate and then prevent a return of whatever kind of insect infestation you end up having.
Why do some termites have wings?
Some types of termites grow wings when they reach reproductive maturity and then subsequently shed them and head for the ground.
Finding shed termite wings might be quite rare, but some people have detected termite infestations in their house by identifying the equal-sized pairs of discarded wings present on their window sills, attics, and in the direct vicinity of light fixtures, or in spiderwebs within their house.
Termite wings aren’t something that you will probably only find a few of. More than likely you will find many in the same area since termites during this stage of life tend to “swarm” together toward the light.
At this stage of life, termite alates flock toward the light and can often be found near a light source, artificial or natural. People often report finding them near lights on their porch or near a window seal or similar area.
Drywood termite swarms are often smaller in quantity when compared to subterranean termites. The dry wood swarmers can be found in quantities of 10-100 termites. Subterranean termite swarmers can reach quantities into the thousands making them much more obviously detected.
Remember that understanding termites can lead to better prevention on your part. And nothing will lower your termite control cost more than implementing termite prevention strategies.
People often confuse ant swarmers with termite swarmers so ensure you understand the difference between these two similar-looking insects.