Termites cause billions in damage annually and there are over 2500 termite species worldwide, including 40 in the UAE. The three main types are subterranean, drywood, and dampwood termites. Subterranean termites, which cause over 75% of damage, live in colonies that can contain hundreds of thousands to over a million members. Their life cycle and castes (workers, soldiers, reproductives) are described. Both pre-construction and post-construction termite treatments are used, involving trenching, drilling, and applying liquid termiticides. Baiting systems that use slow-acting poisons can also be used but may take longer to achieve control.

1. TERMITE CONTROL
BIOLOGY OF TERMITE AND ITS CONTROL.
MATERIAL COLLECTED BY: SAJJAD HUSSAIN MALIK
M.Sc Entomologist.
TERMITES HAVE ALMOST 2500 SPECIES IN THE WORLD. In UAE Almost 40
species. Termite causes billions of dollars damage each year in the world.

2. Termites VS Ants
Common confusion.
Order: Hymenoptera order: isopteran.

3. Life cycle of termites.
The queen can lay 2,000 eggs per day and live as long as 50 years
The General Categories of Termites.
1-Subterranean - Over 75% of the problem.
2-Drywood - About 20% of the problem.
3-Dampwood - not of much structural.
 Subterranean termite colonies have about 250,000 members, but can
have 1 million or more.

4. 1- Eastern Subterranean Termites.
Most common and damaging termites in all over the world and UAE.
Eastern Subterranean Termite Workers.
 Workers are most numerous of the three castes
 Colonies may contain from 50,000 to 5 million workers
 Foraging distance of 230 feet.
 Workers forage for food; tend eggs, young, and reproductive’s; build tubes.

5.  Workers have chewing mouthparts and cause all the damage in wooden
structures
 Workers are cream colored, soft bodied, and blind.
 This caste cannot be used for identification.
Eastern Subterranean Termite Wood Damage.
 Workers feed in the soft portion of the wood.
 Create galleries lined with a muddy fecal material
 Large colonies consume 1 pound of wood per day
 Termites feed on anything composed of cellulose.

6. Eastern Subterranean Termite Feces.
Fecal material is usually incorporated into carton tubes.
 Fecal material is more moist than that of dry wood termites and contain lignin, the
 Relatively indigestible portion of wood.
Subterranean Termite Mud Tubes:
 Tubes are made of mud and carton
 Carton is made of partially chewed wood, feces, and soil packed together
 Tubes serve to maintain humidity required for survival and to protect from predators
Eastern Subterranean Termite Entry Into Buildings:
 This occurs around pipes or other utilities that penetrate the concrete slab of a Structure’.
 Workers use carton tubes to gain entry and create a "highway" in which they travel to
and from the nest to forage.

7. Eastern Subterranean Termite Soldier:
 Rectangular shaped, reddish-brown head and cream colored body
 Soldiers comprise only 1 to 3% of the foraging termite population
 Soldiers preserved in 70% isopropyl alcohol are useful in identification.
 Smooth mandibles protrude from the front of the soldier's head
 Head is specialized for defending the colony
 Unable to feed due to position of the mandibles, fed by workers.
TERMITE QUEEN.
Subterranean Termite Alates:
 Winged reproductive termites
 Swarm during the day
 After swarming they drop their wings and look for a nesting site
 This stage is often confused with ants.

8. Subterranean Termite Wingless Reproductive:
 After swarming, alates break off their wings and search for a site to begin a new
colony
 Burrow into ground or rotten wood where the queen lays eggs to start new colony
 After a swarm, de-alated reproductive’s are often found on the floor or near windows.
Home owner Prevention
 Avoid wood to ground contact.
 AVOID MOISTURE, Proper installation of gutters and downspouts
 Avoid sprinkler system directed toward walls.
 ROUTINE INSPECTION AND MAINTENANCE.

9. Treatment for Subterranean Termites:
 Traditional chemical barrier around and under home
 Termite baiting systems
 Treatment of wood with borates
 Other
CHEMICAL TREATMENT.
Repellents: mostly used as pretreatments (before pad is poured)
• SPECTRUM – LAMBDA CYHALOTHRIN.
• Demon – cypermethrin
• Various others – permethrin
Non-repellent: post treatments (after construction)
• Phantom – chlorfenapyr
• Termidor – fipronil
• Premise – imidicloprid,
FOR TERMITE CONTROL
TWO TYPES OF TREATMENTS.
1- PRE-CONSTRUCTION TREATMENT
2- POST- CONSTRUCTION TREATMENT.

10. 1-Post construction treatment.
Anti-termite treatment after the construction by making trenches or holes of 30-60cm near the
external walls or making holes (30cm)inside the building where there is termite activity (spot
treatment).
Typical Subterranean Termite Post Construction Treatment Process – Drilling,
Trenching and pouring of chemicals.Baiting
Where trenching can’t be done in soil such as concrete pads up against the
foundation, like in patios, entry ways and garages, holes need to be drilled to
the soil and treated.
Fig: Drill Machine for making holes.

11. DRILLING SHOULD BE DONE BY 12MM DIAMETER DRILL AND LENGTH OF HOLE
SHOULD BE 4-5 INCH OR DRILL MACHINE SHOULD CROSS THE FLOOR SLAB.
Fig. shows Drilling before pouring chemical solution.
Above Fig: shows holes ready for pouring chemical solution.
 4-5 liter of chemical solution should be poured in each hole.

13. FIG: BELOW SHOW FILLING OF HOLES AFTER POURING CHEMICAL SOLUTIONS.
.
Fig: shows after Trenching, chemical treatment is completed and again we
have to make back soil process.
Termite baits.
Bait tubes are placed in the ground every 10 feet around the structure to attract foraging termites

14. Termites consume bait, take it back to the colony, and share food with other termites in the colony
The bait affects the growth and development of termites resulting in termite colony collapse.
 Bait stations placed in areas where termites are known to be present
 Termites feed on bait and feed it to other termites at the colony
 The active ingredient is a slow acting stomach poison--direct kill of
termites in the colony.

15. Advantages of Termite Baits
 Reduce insecticide usage-- reduce environmental impact
 Selective toward termites
 Control can be achieved without ever entering the home.
Disadvantages Of Termite Baits
 No guarantee that termites will feed on bait
 More costly than conventional chemical treatment
 May require up to a year or longer gaining control.
2-Pre-construction treatment:
It is done at the initial stage of construction of building .it is divided into 3 operations as
following.
t
1- STAGE 1ST
(FOUNDATION TRENCH TREATMENT.)
This treatment is carried out after the execution is over and before laying
the concrete.

16. FIG: SHOWS FIRST STAGE TERMITE TREATMENT.
2- Stage 2nd (Backfilled soil treatment.)
Once the soil is filled along with walls and columns up to ground level, we
grout holes along walls and columns. This will be on tie beams plumbing
utility pipes joint opening of septic tanks.

17. 3- STAGE 3RD
(PERIMETER WALLS AREA.)
The final is the barrier treatment by making trench of 40cmX20 cm(40
depth and 20 wide.) to get good coverage and create a chemical barrier
against the subterranean termite.
FIG: SHOWS 3RD STAGE TERMITE CONTROL TREATMENT.

18. WRITTEN BY: SAJJAD HUSSAIN MALIK
M.Sc (Hons.)Agri.Entomology.
EX-PLANT PROTECTION OFFICER
GOVT.OF PUNJAB PAKISTAN.