Termites frighten South Florida residents

June 7, 2006

It's South Florida's termite season, but this year a "super termite" species is reportedly starting to scare South Florida pest-control experts.

The Formosan termite is larger and hungrier than most species found in South Florida, and it has begun to spread, the Miami Herald reported Wednesday.

Once seen only in southeast Broward County near Fort Lauderdale, Formosan colonies are now being reported as far north as Lighthouse Point, as far west as West Hollywood, and even in the Miami-Dade County area.

Florida's year-round tropical climate is ideal for subterranean termites like the Formosan, which were brought into Florida on Chinese ships about 25 years ago.

But the Formosan termites eat six times as much as other termites and are twice the size of other species, the newspaper reported.

Copyright 2006 by United Press International


print this article email this article download pdf blog this article bookmark this article     Stumble it Digg this share on Facebook retweet share on Reddit add to delicious
Rate this story - 4.4 /5 (9 votes)


June 7, 2006 all stories

Comments: 0

4.4 /5 (9 votes)
  • Stumble this up

  • Digg this

  • share this

  • hide
  • Related Stories

  • Did termites help Katrina destroy New Orleans floodwalls?
    created Oct 14, 2008 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0


Other News

Destruction spreads 'like a disease'

Biology / Ecology

created 19 minutes ago | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

(PhysOrg.com) -- People have cleared more than a quarter of the world’s forests and half of its grasslands, according to a paper published today in the Proceedings of the Royal Society by researchers from The University of Que ...


When camouflage is a plant's best protection

Rare woodland plant uses 'cryptic coloration' to hide from predators

Biology / Plants & Animals

created 1hour ago | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

It is well known that some animal species use camouflage to hide from predators. Individuals that are able to blend in to their surroundings and avoid being eaten are able to survive longer, reproduce, and ...


'Safety valve' protects photosynthesis from too much light

Biology / Cell & Microbiology

created 2 hours ago | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Photosynthetic organisms need to cope with a wide range of light intensities, which can change over timescales of seconds to minutes. Too much light can damage the photosynthetic machinery and cause cell death. Scientists ...


Cells defend themselves from viruses, bacteria with armor of protein errors

Biology / Cell & Microbiology

created 2 hours ago | popularity 5 / 5 (4) | comments 0

When cells are confronted with an invading virus or bacteria or exposed to an irritating chemical, they protect themselves by going off their DNA recipe and inserting the wrong amino acid into new proteins to defend them ...


Researchers discover biological basis of 'bacterial immune system'

Biology / Cell & Microbiology

created 3 hours ago | popularity 4 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Bacteria don't have easy lives. In addition to mammalian immune systems that besiege the bugs, they have natural enemies called bacteriophages, viruses that kill half the bacteria on Earth every two days.