re: F’in termites have arrived

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had about 50 in my house tonight in Mandeville! Freaking insane! I found the source of entry (the light/fan above the shower. I fixed that for now.

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READ THIS ABOUT TERMITES FROM ARCENEAUX PEST SERVICES
You may have noticed that Formosan termites are swarming in large numbers
recently. The swarmers (alates) are the members of the termite colony that make
a mating flight around Mother's Day annually. They swarm starting at dusk and
are attracted to light and may swarm for several hours a night. The swarmers
attempt to mate and then get back to the soil and start a new colony. An
existing Formosan colony of termites can have several hundred thousand or more
termites. When the colony decides to swarm (based on temperature and humidity)
tens of thousands of swarmers may take flight. They can fly about 300 yards from
their colony but can only live a few hours unless they find a mate and get back
to the soil. Formosan termites are subterranean termites, thus the colony lives
in the soil and attacks houses by making mud tunnels on the foundation of the
home.
As a homeowner you may see some of the swarmers in your home since they can get
in through poorly sealed windows, door areas, attic ridge and turbine vents,
gable vents, bathroom and kitchen vents that penetrate the roof. The swarmers
are smaller than the screen mesh inside the vents. Most of the swarmers will
have shed their wings getting in through your vents. It is very important to
know that swarming Formosan termites CAN NOT infest your home. They MUST get
back to soil after mating to survive. They will die within a few hours of being
inside a home.
Finding 1-50 or so swarmers in your attic area, kitchen or bathroom is no cause
for alarm, particularly if most of the swarmers do not have their wings still
attached. Wingless swarmers usually means you don't have an infestation inside
your home. If you were to have several hundred swarmers with their wings still
attached inside your home then you should call us for an inspection.
I realize that talk of termites can be distressing. Several homeowners
have contacted us so I felt it best to send an email and try to explain how to
best think about Formosan termite swarmers. It has become normal to see a few
Formosan swarmers in our homes and businesses over the last few years. I even
had some swarmers inside my office that came in via the bathroom vent.

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