Shanti Singh, age 15, of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, for his question:
Are ants and termites related?
Termites and carpenter ants can ruina beautiful building in 3ust a few years. These little house wreckers tunnel networks in the woodwork and weaken the wooden supports. The walls and floors begin to sag. When these destructive insects are not stopped, the whole house comes tumbling doom. If an expert is called in time, he can stop the little house checkers in their tracks. But before he can take proper measures, he first finds out whether he is coping with ants or termites.
Both ants and termites are insects of the Class Insecta. However, the differences are so great that they are grouped in different orders. Ants are frisky midgets with skinny waists and necks. Some are fairly light tan, but most of them come in dark shades of brown, reddish broom or black. They scurry around in the bright light of day and often invade the kitchen for scraps of food. They are nest building social insects of the insect Order Iiymenoptera.
The termites also are social nest builders. They loop somewhat like pasty white caterpillars with bulging stomachs, without slender waists or necks. Like all insects they have six legs for chalking but they are rather sluggish. What's more, they are quite blind and cannot abide the light of day. The various termites are classified in the, Order Isoptera.
When we see them, we never mistake an ant for a termite. However'. both have tough mouth parts suitable for hard substances. The termites chew wood and tunnel through wood to build their nests. The sizeable black carpenter ants also are wood chewers and they too build their nests in logs and timbers. This is where the confusion between ants and termites arises.
A house can be demolished by either termites or carpenter ants. The first sign of trouble may be soft scraping noises in the woodwork, heard when the house is silent. No termite mill be seen, for they never leave their comfortably dark tunnels. But if the secret house wreckers are carpenter ants, they may give themselves away. A few sizeable black ants may be seen scurrying around the kitchen.
As a rule, a great deal of damage is done to the wooden framework of a house before anybody suspects that termites or ants are at work. Some states require an inspection for ants and termites before a building is sold to a new owner. Sensible property owners schedule these inspections on a regular basis, just in case. An expert then can detect an invasion in time, identify the culprits and destroy them.
When termites or carpenter ants have had time to weaken the wooden structure of a building, drastic measures may be necessary. The whole house may have to be sealed in a great plastic bag and fumigated. When termites and their nests are destroyed, it is necessary to plug all the exits to their tunnels. Sometimes, when the termites move out, carpenter ants move right in and continue with their own house wrecking.