Termites Treatment and Control ...

How to Identify Termites, The eastern subterranean termite, Reticulitermes flavipes nests in the soil and feeds on wood buried in or near the soil. This termite species prefers moist wood and is the common termite of New England. Worker termites are small white insects that avoid light and build mud tubes to reach wood above ground. The mud tubes are made of soil and saliva and are about the diameter of a pencil. Large termite swarms occur in the spring when black, winged reproductive males and females leave the nest to mate and disperse. The size of the underground colony can reach millions of workers and several buildings can be attacked by a single large colony 

Workers are pale white, small, soft bodied insects less than ¼ inches in length. The soldiers are fewer in number, larger and with a large head and mandibles. Soldier termites are white with a dark yellow head. The male and female reproductives are black with four pairs of equal size clear wings. The wings drop off immediately after mating and they may pile up near windows and other sources of light.

How to recognize termite damage: Termite damage to wood can be recognized because there are small fecal pellets of digested wood along with soil particles within the galleries. Galleries are typically located in wood close to or touching the ground or wood wet with excessive moisture from a leak or other water source

Termite Biology: Winged males and females swarm (fly) during late March and early to late April. These reproductives then mate, drop to the ground and immediately loose their wings. These mated pairs of male and female then together excavate into the soil and begin a new nest. A termite can feed on paper, buried wood, bark mulch, dead roots of trees, and of course wood frame timber in houses