Fun Facts About Termites

How much do you know about termites? You know enough to realize they cause Americans about $5 billion each year in damage repair from their destructive ways. And you might also know that if you see a mud tube on your wall that they probably put it there.

But what don’t you know about them? Don’t rush to Google it! Here is some interesting and entertaining termite trivia to memorize and share with your friends. Or don’t.

1. Termites Shared the Earth With Dinosaurs
   Termites have been around for millions of years: It’s estimated that the earliest termites lived about 250 million years ago. To put this into perspective, the earliest dinosaurs lived approximately 230 million years ago. In fact, paleontologists have uncovered dinosaur bones holding novel insect traces that suggest ancient termites may have played an important role as decomposers of vertebrate remains such as those of dinosaurs in the Early Jurassic era. Holy Brontosaurus!
2. Termites Are Almost Always Blind
   In almost all termite species, both the workers and soldiers in a given colony are blind. Since these industrious individuals spend their lives in the dark, damp nest, they have no need to develop functional eyes. Reproductive termites are the only termites that require eyesight as they must fly to find mates and new nest sites.
3. Termites Are Well-Groomed
   You wouldn’t think an insect that spends its time in the dirt would be so particular about its grooming, but termites make an effort to stay clean. Termites spend a great deal of time grooming each other. Their good hygiene is important to their survival, as it keeps parasites and harmful bacteria under control within the colony.
4. Termites Never Sleep
   Ever. No need for an espresso break to stay awake! Termites are simple organisms and don’t have to recharge their batteries like many other creatures do. They are able to build their colonies 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, without stopping. Until they die.
5. Termite Dads Pull Their Weight
   You won’t find deadbeat dads in the termite mound! Unlike in bee colonies, where males die soon after mating, the termite kings stick around. After their nuptial flight, the termite king stays with his queen, fertilizing her eggs as needed. He also shares parental duties with the queen, helping her feed their young predigested food.
6. Termites Are Edible – ewwww!
   In some parts of the world, people eat termites to cure sickness or use them as a nutritional staple to their diet. In Singapore, people eat termites dipped in alcohol or rice wine or even live termites. Amazonian peoples breathe the smoke of burning termite nests to get rid of the flu.
7. Termites Outweigh People
   If you put every termite on the planet on a scale, it’s estimated their total combined weight would be 445 million tons. If the magnitude of this number isn’t registering, imagine doing the same thing with humans — we’d only weigh 350 million tons! For every person on the planet, there are 1,000 pounds of termites.

Now you know more about termites than you did a few minutes ago. Not so fun when termites are causing a problem in your home or business. Seek help from the professionals who know all the facts about termites and MORE, like how to effectively treat and Control Termites.