Forum—A National Formosan Subterranean Termite
Termites are among the most economically important insects in the world.
While also ecologically important in nutrient recycling, they're best known as
structural and plant pests that compete with people for shelter and food.
The Formosan subterranean termite is a species from Asia that now infests
over a dozen U.S. states, costing its human competitors about $1 billion
annually in control measures and damage repair.
In this issue, you'll read about "Operation Full Stop," a national
termite-fighting campaign led by USDA's Agricultural Research Service. Along with
its collaborators, ARS is launching a coordinated attack using environmentally
sound management practices aimed at suppressing termite populations and
eliminating the damage they cause. This attack will take three concurrent
· Integrating the best available control technologies into large-area
pilot tests to suppress termite populations and keep them from regaining
· Conducting site-specific trials to evaluate individual control
products and technologies.
· Developing new and improved termite-fighting weapons through
fundamental research and scientific discovery.
This aggressive new campaign arrives at a time when the conventional
approach of excluding termites, structure-by-structure, is failing. Defending a
building using chemical repellents around its perimeter does not decrease
termite populations or activity in the surrounding area.
Moreover, chemicals available today do not provide the same long-term
control as did organochlorine compounds. Chlordane, the last effective
organochlorine used as a termiticide, was banned in 1988.
Unlike defensive measures used in the past, Operation Full Stop is
strategically offensive--aimed toward reducing termite populations by
attacking and killing the pests throughout an area or community.
This offensive approach to eliminating pests areawide or throughout an
entire community not only prevents damage, it also offers built-in
sustainability--key in reducing chemical usage over time.
ARS' community-based approach to Formosan termite control emphasizes use of
toxic baits but will employ many tactics. Where appropriate, this holistic
approach will call on chemical soil treatments, use of preserved wood, and
sanitation--that is, removing wood trash and eliminating moisture sources that
termites need to thrive. Physical barriers will also play a role.
All these tactics are critical to maintaining an environment inhospitable to
termites. Still, research to improve baits by increasing their attractiveness
and killing potential remains a high priority.
Another priority is development and use of sensitive monitoring devices that
use acoustics and infrared technology to detect the termites' activity early so
that remedial action can be taken before they do extensive damage. And better
understanding of termites' food tastes and foraging behavior will lead to more
precise placement of monitoring stations and baits. Besides minimizing damage,
this approach lowers the program's operating costs and reduces the amount of
toxicant needed to do the job.
The Formosan termite is an exotic pest that escaped its co-evolved natural
enemies--one possible reason why it has spread unchecked across the South.
Importation and establishment of one or more of this termite's natural enemies
could permanently reduce its populations. With such prospects in mind, ARS
scientists are preparing expeditions to the pest's native home in East Asia to
seek out these as yet unidentified beneficial organisms.
On the home front, ARS is assembling a crack team of scientists to staff its
new Formosan Subterranean Termite Research Unit at the agency's Southern
Regional Research Center in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Scientists in the unit will conduct studies on biological control, insect
nutrition, population ecology, biochemistry, toxicology, and structural
engineering. They'll also investigate colony growth, development, and foraging
behavior for clues to the termites' Achilles' heel.
But this team isn't doing the work alone. Members are in fact working
closely with a cadre of experts from other collaborating agencies, research
organizations, private industry, and academia. You'll read about many of them
in the following pages.
Even with such talent, it's unlikely we can eradicate the Formosan termite.
Instead, our goal is to reduce the pest's numbers, eliminate the damage it
causes to our communities, and determine the best tactics for reducing and
eliminating subterranean termite populations.
This effort should bring much-needed peace of mind to home and
property owners across the South and throughout the nation.
Edgar G. King
South Area Director
published in the October 1998 issue of Agricultural Research magazine.
to see this issue's table of contents.