OT: Bugs in the garden!!
- Thread starter talon4x4
- Start date
museumguy
Active member
They are indeed termites. As an entomologist I would be excited to find these but they probably aren't the best guests for around your house. They DO live in the wild in NY but are not nearly as common as they are down south.
Fun fact: You can draw lines on copier paper with ballpoint pens and if the type of ink is the right one (think cheap disposable blue/black pens) the termites will follow it. One of the common chemicals in the pen ink is the same chemical termites use to lay down a path back to the nest. You can even draw a big circle and the termites will circle around and around. It is a neat experiment for kids.
Fun fact: You can draw lines on copier paper with ballpoint pens and if the type of ink is the right one (think cheap disposable blue/black pens) the termites will follow it. One of the common chemicals in the pen ink is the same chemical termites use to lay down a path back to the nest. You can even draw a big circle and the termites will circle around and around. It is a neat experiment for kids.
MatAndPatti
New member
I always wondered if we really have termites around here very much. You'd think from the number of mailings I get from Terminix that they're about to carry everyone's houses away. :worried:
Carpenter ants, on the other hand... I know we've got plenty of those! :angryfire:
Carpenter ants, on the other hand... I know we've got plenty of those! :angryfire:
Gary Majchrzak
Team RC
very likely the potted plants harboring the termites were shipped north from down south
You are correct. They are plants she ordered from a woman in Tennessee.
So, are there enough there to worry about?!? Should I get something to kill them?? I would have to estimate there were around 50 of them. Also, what are the chances they killed the Rhododendron they shipped with??
Gary Majchrzak
Team RC
jmo
jmo
but I would have already sent ALL of them to the great termite mound in the sky
:deadhorse1:
jmo
but I would have already sent ALL of them to the great termite mound in the sky
:deadhorse1:
reefboarder
Intelligent Donkey
With just the little knowledge of non native species I have, I would think not terminating them was a huge risk to your home and neighbors, non-native species have the tendency to reproduce rapidly and become a problem. Like I mentioned I have very little knowledge to back it up, this is JMO
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
museumguy
Active member
Pretty sure these are the Eastern Subterranian termite Reticulitermes flavipes.
Though probably something you may not want to keep around there isn't a huge ecological risk here. These are not a non-native species, they are in fact native to New York and do not pose any serious threat to your environment in my opinion.
