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ViewAttendees 4

Student 10-Minute Paper

Medical, Urban, and Veterinary Entomology

Student Competition

Student

Grad Competition MUVE: Urban and Structural Pests 1

(1st Place) Foraging behavior of Coptotermes formosanus and its ability to intercept in-ground bait

Monday, November 6, 2023
8:24 AM – 8:36 AM ET
Location: Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center, Potomac 3-4
In-Person Student Competition
The Formosan subterranean termite, Coptotermes formosanus, is both an economically impactful pest and a successful invader. One method of subterranean termite control is baiting. When placing baits around the perimeter of a structure, the label prescribes installing baits in a uniform distance (3 m) from each other. Often, homeowners and termite control professionals express concerns over the possibility that termites may bypass bait stations and have access to the structure. To address this concern, we designed an experiment using a large planar arena (3.6 x 1.1 m) to duplicate field conditions. In the arena, we placed two bait stations 3 m apart, per label instructions, and C. formosanus colonies were attached to allow them to forage towards the bait stations. A camera was placed above the arena to observe tunnel geometry and record the time it took for termites to intercept at least one bait station. The results showed that it took an average of 22 days for termites to find the bait and that they systematically searched the arena by covering an area of about 900 cm2 before moving on to search the next area. These findings will substantially contribute to the improvement of termite baiting programs and the understanding of subterranean termite foraging behaviors.