Soldiers are, like workers sterile, wingless and blind males and females with an unpigmented, unsclerotized cuticle. Soldiers defend their colony from intruders by the use of powerful jaws and / or by ejecting a white sticky repellent from an opening on their head. Soldiers cannot feed themselves; they have to be fed by workers. Usually the number of soldiers is much smaller than the number of workers. Soldiers can be mandibulate or nasute, depending on the species. Therefore, soldiers can be used for the identification of termite species. The life span of the soldiers is one to two years.

Termite Feeding Habits

Subterranean termites feed exclusively on wood and wood products containing cellulose. Termites have protozoa (microorganisms) in their intestines that provide enzymes to digest cellulose. Although termites are soft-bodied insects, their hard, saw-toothed jaws work like shears and are able to bite off extremely small fragments of wood, a piece at a time.

Termites often infest buildings and damage lumber, wood panels, flooring, sheetrock, wallpaper, plastics, paper products and fabric made of plant fibers. The most serious damage is the loss of structural strength.

Other costly losses include attacks on flooring, roofs, carpeting, art work, books, clothing, furniture and available papers. Subterranean termites do not attack live trees.

Termite swarming

As a general rule, most subterranean termites swarm under these condition:

Daytime, usually mid day

Sunny

Often following rain

Dead termites or wings around windows, doors, cooling/heating vents, or in bath tubs and sinks, are signs of termite activity.

Control

 There are two types of treatments by which the termiticide can be effectively placed and establish a chemical barrier.

1-Pre-Construction Treatment

Apply termiticide spray mixture on the floor surface prior to pouring of the concrete slab. The soil close to the outside perimeter of the wall should also be treated. High pressure is not recommended as many tiny droplets escape and land on non-target surfaces.

Know the floor area to be treated in order to determine the amount of chemicals needed for the treatment.

2-Post-Construction Treatment

Drill holes in the slab as close as possible to the inside and outside walls of the building, along cracks and expansion joints at 50 centimeters intervals and at around 30cm depth. Try to avoid drilling through water and sewer lines and electrical conduits laid under the concrete slab.

If possible obtain building plans. Avoid run off; stop injecting when the solution starts to come out through the nearest hole.

All holes must be carefully filled and sealed after the treatment has been completed.

If it has no concrete slab, rodding may be done along the outside wall at same rate as injecting holes mentioned above.

The other method is by trenching around the building, 15 centimeter wide and 30 centimeter depth. Apply 6 liters (spay mixture) per linear meter.

Cover the trench once the chemical barriers are placed.

In addition to the normal Safety precautions procedures, the following should be observed;

•   Wear Rubber gloves when handling concentrate insecticide.
•   Ensure adequate protection during application of termiticide, such as overall, rubber boots, apron, face shield and respirator with filter/s designed for organic vapors.
•   Avoid contact with the eyes, skin and clothing.
•   In cases where contact has occurred, wash all exposed parts of the body with soap and water.
•   At the time of application, all persons not involved in the process, must be at a safe distance.
•   Do not inject with a leaky hose.
•   Overalls worn for termite treatment should be laundered separately from other clothes.