NEW ORLEANS (WGNO) — Nothing ruins a night out like a termite swarm and this is their time of the year!
According to Mark Janowiecki, Research Entomologist with the New Orleans Mosquito, Termite, and Rodent Control Board (NOMTRCB), “We are in swarm season. Swarm season lasts from early May to Early June, that’s kind of the peak of it. We’ll get some in April and some almost until the 4th of July, but our peak season is middle of May Mother’s Day time.”
Janowiecki studies these creatures and he says the swarms are how termites grow population.
“The swarms are part of their life cycle. So this is how they start new colonies. When a colony is large enough, they begin to produce the alates that we see swarming and then in the spring they synchronize,” said Janowiecki.
Most of us would prefer if the Formosan termites would remain subterranean.
To help monitor the swarms NOMTRCB has started posting overnight results of swarm activity on their social media.
Janowiecki says this may not predict future swarms.
“It’s really just for that day. You might have a big swarm one day and then nothing for the next few days,” said Janowiecki.
The goal is to give residents an idea of activity. What’s most important is how we treat termites on our property.
“You can use a barrier treatment where they put a liquid insecticide around the perimeter of your, and this is a way of keeping out those colonies. You can also use the bait systems,” said Janowiecki.
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