Pest Management Professional, January 2014

austins agenda Austin M Frishman Ph D t Technical Consultant In colder climates subterranean termites tend to eat with increased frequency in the early spring and late fall Why wont this termite bait work T here are many reasons why your subterranean termite baiting isnt working After all no control program is a panacea Termite baits are no exception Common mistakes to avoid are Baits were installed in the wrong location You werent thinking like a termite and used a rigid grid approach for placement To avoid this inspect your surroundings and think about where the most likely path to approach the structure is for a termite The bait stations are located in soil previously treated with subsoil liquid termiticide This prevents the termites from establishing strong trails to the bait and from bringing new termites to the bait The bait was contaminated in the vehicle It was stored in an area where other pesticide odors could absorb onto the bait complex Heavy rains flooded your bait and left an ideal environment for termite repulsive fungi Or perhaps rain caused the bait station to float up above ground level The termites died in the bait station Enough said Nonattractive mold covered the monitoring stakes This means you selected too wet an area to monitor Remember sprinkler systems and downspouts can oversoak monitors Place accordingly Your hands reek of tobacco The odor is absorbed into the bait station Smokers should wear gloves You barely missed them For unknown reasons termites moved away and never hit a bait station Termites focus on trail pheromones which direct them next toward but not into a bait station You didnt have enough bait or monitoring stake material available The termites ate it all and emitted pheromones to notify the rest of the colony to avoid this area Your station tops arent level to the ground Perhaps the ground froze lifting the bait station several inches or maybe you never level the stations to the ground in the first place Sabotage Raccoons dogs and vandals have been known to dig up stations The stations are spaced too far apart Over time weve learned several can be used in one area Too much competition Maybe theres enough ground cover and wood debris for the termites to eat before they need to attempt to find your bait Removing tree stumps and wood in contact with the ground can help avoid this or at least reduce the chance of this occurring The stations are covered with new topsoil The termites can tunnel over the top of the bait stations and never enter it Dry weather pushed termites underground During a drought termites might tunnel into deeper moist soil well below the bottom of the bait stations The termites are above ground and dont return to the soil because of moisture in a wall Eliminating the moisture source and using aboveground bait stations can correct this You disturbed the bait station by opening it up doing a visual check and placing it back not realizing live termites were just below the bait you pulled out With a strong flashlight you could have seen the termites but you changed the bait just when it was prime time for attack The new bait isnt as attractive and it could take months for the termites to attack the bait if at all Your timing is off In colder climates subterranean termites tend to eat with increased frequency in the early spring and late fall Sometimes the bait is checked in September and then left until the following spring By then the bait might have already been consumed Your stations are too well guarded Ants millipedes centipedes and other arthropods can enter the termite bait stations below ground and keep the termites away PMP You can reach Frishman an industry consultant since 1967 and president of AMF Pest Management Services at mypmp@ northcoastmedia net 36 January 2014 Pest Management Professional www mypmp net