Swarming Termites and What They Mean for Your Home
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Flitting through the early summer air, under the streetlight, those are ... mosquitoes? No. Ants? No. They’re termites. And they’re headed to your front door.
In the spring and early summer, as temperatures rise and there is adequate moisture above ground, subterranean termite colonies release a swarm — literally — of workers to fly off and establish a new colony.
”Swarming termites are nature’s way of informing you that there’s very likely an active infestation or active colonies nearby,” says Eddie Brewer Jr., Certified Sentricon Specialist® and owner of Redd Pest Solutions. “For many homeowners, there’s a common misconception that if you’re not seeing them around your house, you don’t have anything to worry about. But the truth is, if you see swarming termites, or there’s an active colony somewhere close by, whether it’s your neighbor’s or down the street, that could potentially cause you problems down the road as those colonies begin to mature. Particularly if you don’t have any protection around your own home.”
Termites can forage distances greater than 100 yards as they search for new food sources, so even if you see some swarming by your cul-de-sac streetlamp, they could be just next door. Certified Sentricon Specialist Isaac Smith, from Prewett Pest Control says a swarm may not indicate that termites are in your home, but the concern is that it does indicate they are very close.
“Statistics tell us that there are several colonies of termites per acre property, but [swarming termites] indicate that they’re pretty close to the house, because swarming termites are not very good flyers. So they’re not flying far from where they actually pop up out of the ground,” he says. “You need to protect your home and be preventative, not reactionary.”
Termites can chew through more than your home — they can quickly chew through your savings account, vacation fund or emergency account.
Sometimes it takes years before you spot their damage — that’s years of silent munching left to repair. Don’t let the silent destroyers catch you unprotected.
If you’re seeing swarming subterranean termites nearby, your best bet to protect your biggest investment is to find a local Certified Sentricon Specialist.
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