Termites types explained by an entomologist

Hi everyone, this is Paul Curtis with Terminix. The question today is, what types of termites are there? Which is a great question. There are about four different types of termites, although there are 41 or so species in the United States.

The main categories are:

Dampwood termites

Drywood termites

Subterranean termites

Tree or conehead termites

Termites are usually referred to by the types of environments or habitats that they prefer. And so dampwood termites like to be in moist, rotting wood, so they're not widely distributed. They are the largest termite in the U.S.; however, they're not common infesters of structures.

Next up, the drywood termite, who doesn't need all of the moisture that most of the other termite species need. Drywood termites fly from structure to structure and damage wood. Drywood termites are found in warm coastal areas of the United States, from the Carolinas down through Florida, through Texas, and into California.

Then the largest, most widely distributed group of termites are the subterranean termites. The most common are referred to as Eastern subterranean termites, and they're responsible for the majority of termite damage that's done in the United States. An invasive species of subterranean termites called Formosans have much larger colonies and can do much more damage in a shorter period of time.

And the final category are arboreal or tree termites, commonly called conehead termites. These termites were recently introduced into the United States through Florida. The conehead termites travel on top of the ground like ants instead of tunneling like subterranean termites, and they can be even more destructive than the Formosan termites.

And that wraps up the different types of termites. Thanks for the question! If you have any other comments or questions, please feel free to call or leave comments below.