It is
estimated that termites cause over $100 million damage in Australia every
year.
Subterranean
termites have a caste system with each member performing a particular
function, the
queen lays her eggs. The king fertilizes them, the workers care for the eggs
and feed the young. The soldiers guard against attack.
Subterranean
termites travel between their humid nests in the soil and their food which
is wood. Workers feed on and destroy the wood and then feed other castes in
the community.
Termites
travel through tunnels and then through mud tubes. Ingeniously constructed to
protect them from the dry atmosphere outside.
These
tubes are sometimes visible on masonry or foundation walls and stumps. They
are extremely difficult to detect as sometimes only a few inches of the
tubes are visible.
Any
area where wood touches soil, or comes close to it, is potential
food for termites.
