Termites are social insects. The Termite Mud Nest is found in the soil. Winged males and females that will reproduce are usually seen in the spring after rain.
The winged termites require the right temperature, moisture and light to leave their nest. The king and the queen find a location to start a colony.
They stay together because they must mate frequently to ensure that their colony grows. The queen can lay thousands of eggs per year for up to five years. Keep reading to find out more!
How Do I Describe the Termite Life Cycle?
Termites grow from eggs to adulthood within two to seven weeks. The eggs develop into wingless Nymphs, which then go through three stages. The first stage lasts 10-14 days. The second stage is 2-3 weeks, and the third takes about 3-4 weeks.
The only termite type that is present at the start of the mating process is worker termites. The eggs eventually develop into three types of termites – false workers without wings, which moult constantly; nymphs that have wing pads and will become winged reproductive termites – and soldier nymphs.
Soldier nymphs defend the colony against invaders, such as ants. The majority of colony members are workers who have different jobs.
Some workers look after the nesting site, the queen and the larvae. Some workers are in search of food. These are the most common types of insects.
Read also: A Captivating Description of Termites In Minnesota
How Can I Tell I Have Termites In My House?
Do not be fooled by what you think are flying ants. It could be termite buzzers. Swarmers can also be found dead on windowsills.
Contact a pest management professional if you’re not sure if the insects that you see are termites. It’s easy to learn how to identify termites.
You wouldn’t find a nest of termite mud if you were looking for underground termites. What you see instead are termite tubes.
This looks like dirt-rounded lines running from the ground up to the wood of your house, whether that is the siding, frame, or lattice used for gardening.
The tubes that termites use are the routes they take to get from their nest to your wood. These tubes are also used by termites to travel from the nest to your home, where they feed on the wood cellulose.
Knock away an inch or so of the tube’s central portion to confirm that you are looking at termite tubes. Then, watch for termites to emerge. This is a sure sign of termites.
When you see this, it is time to contact a professional pest control company. Termites can also cause damage inside your home. This could be around the window sills, door frames, or any other wood-based areas.
If you’re not sure if you have termites or not, use a screwdriver to poke around the area and search for tunnels or galleries.
Tunnels and galleries are lined with mud and have a pale appearance due to the faecal matter on their surface.
If you use a screwdriver to knock on wood, listen for the dull thud. This could indicate damage. Pest control professionals can determine if what you see is caused by termite activity.
Dry wood termites are less common but could still be in your home. This type of termite does not nest on the ground, and it requires more expensive treatment.
Ask your pest control specialist to identify the type of termites that may be invading your home. They can then create the most effective termite treatment for your specific problem.
Read also: A Perfect Description of the Concrete Eating Termites
How Do I Describe a Termite Mud Nest?
Subterranean Termites connect to their food sources above ground via the termite mud nest. This termite mud nest is created from soil, wood and termite saliva.
Dehydration is a threat to subterranean termites, as they need moisture to survive. An underground termite mud nest provides shelter that protects termites against dry air, predators and moisture.
What are the Types of Termite Mud Nest?
- Exploratory Termite Mud Nest:
The tubes can branch in many directions, making them thin and fragile. Like other tube types, they are made from faeces and saliva and dirt. They can reach up to 15 feet in the air when constructed over metal or concrete.
Exploratory mud tubes are used to find food sources, but they don’t connect to wood. These tubes are usually fragile and left abandoned when homeowners find them.
Even though the tubes are empty they still indicate termites. Pests may have moved into other areas of the house to find food.
- Working Termite Mud Nest:
Termite colonies use working tubes or utility tubes. The tubes are used to transport thousands of termites per day from the nest to the food source.
The working mud tubes can be arranged like a highway. Some lanes are for transporting food, while others are for construction or repair.
The diameter of these tubes ranges between 1/4 inch and 1 inch. Working tubes, while made of the same material as exploratory tubes are designed to last longer.
Utility mud tubes enable termites to travel along basement walls and foundations of homes for long distances. Termites can also be found under porches, around window frames and on sills.
- Swarm Castle / Swarm Termite Mud Nest:
Imagine the scene – a car breaks down during rush hour in the middle of one of the city’s busiest intersections.
It is a chaotic scene as drivers manoeuvre around one another to avoid hitting anyone and create even worse chaos.
This is an accurate analogy to what happens when swarmer ants begin to move into position in order for them to fly away from the colony. Termite workers are there to bring orders.
Swarm castles are constructed by termite workers to accommodate the termite swarmers that leave the colony in a swarm. Swarm castles are often very large and can reach up to four feet in width.
The termite swarmers can be damaged when the hosts leave the colony. Protection is required to keep them healthy and functional.
The swarm castle was built to protect. The area where the swarmers gather to leave the nest should be smooth and debris-free.
The workers direct the swarmers towards the castle, which is a protective enclosure. Swarmers then move through the many exit holes and take a flight to establish new colonies.
- Drop Termite Mud Nest:
The drop tubes are suspended from the wood structure between the ground. These tubes are easy to recognize because they look similar to stalagmites found in caves.
They are designed to increase the accessibility of food sources to termite workers and to restore a connection between them and the working tubes and ground.
Because they are made of more wood fibres, drop tubes have a lighter colour. They are similar in diameter and brittleness to exploratory mud tubes.
Read also: 6 Signs Your House is Infested with Termites
Conclusion
Do you know if your home has a termite problem? You’re not out of danger just because you can’t find the winged swarms.
There are other indicators of a possible problem, besides the accumulation of flying termites around windows and foundations.
You should contact an expert if you find piles of wings, faeces, tubes of mud, or tunnels. Contact a termite expert as soon as you notice termite activity in your home. Over time, termites can cause structural damage.
Although mud tubes do not pose a threat in and of themselves, they provide the perfect environment for termites to cause havoc while maintaining a moisture level that prevents workers from dying.
A termite mud nest is the first sign of a termite invasion. Thanks for reading!
About The Author
Discover more from Pestclue
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.