2 replies to this topic

[FloridaAnts]

Greetings, once again!

Today, I am back because I just spent 2 hours knocking a piece of wood on a driveway looking like a complete idiot.

So, I recently found an old block of wood used as a door stop, so I lifted it looking for Pheidole, but what I found was quite a surprise. I found a small termite colony with secondary reproductives, in a doorstop. Not sure how they go there(It was in a shed) but after 2 hours of hitting the block against a driveway, I found 50-70 workers, one soldier, and 2 reproductives of some sort. I really lost hope at the end when I found the male, as no termites came out for a solid 30 minutes and I was missing a reproductive.

Anyway, is there anything I need to know before attempting to keep these termites(I think they are dry wood termites). I currently have them in a large weird shaped spice jar, with some leaves, sticks, and a few wood chips. Every other time I try to get a termite colony, it last for about 72 hours… really don’t want this colony to have the same fate.

How did secondary reproductives get here? Two workers wandered into a shed? Happend to be male and female? Or did the come in a large group.

Thanks for any tips, suggestions, and help!

[ANTdrew]

Read Nare’s guide to subterranean termites.
https://www.formicul...es/#entry101485

Edited by ANTdrew, July 11 2022 - 9:26 AM.

[FloridaAnts]

How much soil will dry wood termites need? I found them in sand, so will defiantly give a layer of sand(How thick?)