Termite tubes: Photo roundup from PMPs

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February 23, 2017

It’s not every day that a termite inspector sees an active mud tube at an account. And it’s certainly not every day that he or she sees one built like these. If you’ve got a photo to share, please send it along to pmpeditor@northcoastmedia.net. We just might create a callback for this termite activity.

Photo: Ernest Henson

Photo: Ernest Henson

Ernie Henson, owner of Stormin’ Norman Termite & Pest Control, Maricopa, Ariz., has been treating for Western subterraneans for 23 years and counting. Among his more memorable termite tube encounters was one built on the side of a toilet! This tube, just hanging from the ceiling like so much mistletoe, was also pretty notable and posted at the Instagram account @storminnormanpc.

Photo: Ike Webb

Photo: Ike Webb

Last fall at a residence in Lake Havasu City, Ariz., Havasu Pest Control General Manager Ike Webb encountered subterranean termites taking over a mailbox post. He was even able to shoot some video of the termites pouring out of the tube (see inset). He posted both on Instagram (@havasupestcontrol) — and took care of the problem, of course.

Photo: Andy Bongiorno

Photo: Andy Bongiorno

Andy Bongiorno, owner of Brentwood, Calif.-based Bongiorno Termite Control, posted these subterranean termite migration tubes a couple years ago to his firm’s Instagram account (@bongiorno_termite). This was taken underneath a residence; note the termite wings on the ground nearby.

Photo: Kevin Rollins

Photo: Kevin Rollins

Kevin Rollins, termite division supervisor for Ace Exterminating, Joelton, Tenn., was doing an inspection prior to treatment for a real estate agent’s home when he came across this Eastern subterranean work of art inside a sprinkler control box. It’s posted to Instagram (@aceexterminating). “I’ve been doing this about 15 years, and this one was definitely one of the more interesting ones,” Rollins says with a chuckle. “The termites went up the conduit on the outside — you really didn’t see anything until you opened up the box, and there they were.”

Photo: Terry Neil

Photo: Terry Neil

Terry Neill, owner of Neill’s Pest Control in Blanco, Texas, “had a customer call to come check out something that grew out of a crack in her cement floor overnight.” The floor was the middle of her living room, and she swore the Eastern subterranean tube wasn’t there when she went to bed the night before. Neill found no evidence of live or past infestation otherwise. The home is on a monolithic slab — which Neill notes “apparently has a settling or cracking problem. Why that particular area was picked, I would not have a clue. All I know is they had a long way to go up to reach a food source, the ceiling. It would have been interesting to see how high it could have gone, though!”

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