Termites are the major structural timber destroying pest in Australia. According to reports they do more damage to homes than storms, fires and floods combined. The main problem is that subterranean termites may enter a structure from below ground and cause damage. Termites live in nests which is typically underground but can also be in trees, post, stumps, wood piles or even on the ground. They are a social insect, the typical nest contains several castes; the queen, the king, workers, soldiers and reproductives. The queen can lay thousands of eggs each year. Soldiers often have large heads and mandibles (jaws), their job is to protect the colony. Workers form the majority of the colony have many jobs such as taking care of the queen and the larvae (new hatchlings), foraging for and collecting food and feeding the other castes. It is the workers you find in the damaged timbers with the soldiers to protect them.
Termites are most active in the warmer months. In the cooler months activity often declines, but doesn't necessarily stop. If they are protected from cold temperatures (under a slab) the activity could continue all year round. As there are so many factors to termite damage (type of termite, size of colony, type of wood etc.) there is no accurate way to determine time of first entry.
Termites can feed on almost anything that has cellulose. These include wood, wood products (chip board, Masonite etc), cardboard, paper, canvas, paper on gyprock etc. They can tunnel through materials like plastic or foam to get to cellulose materials.
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