A termite swarm represents the reproductive phase of a mature colony, a synchronized event where thousands of winged male and female termites, called alates, exit their established nest. Their purpose is to find a mate and establish a new colony elsewhere. The appearance of these swarmers is a natural dispersal mechanism, typically triggered by specific environmental cues like warm temperatures and high humidity following rain. While the flying insects themselves do not cause structural damage, their presence is a definitive sign that a large, existing termite colony is thriving nearby.
The Immediate Fate of Swarming Termites
The lifespan of an individual termite alate after it leaves the safety of the nest is exceptionally brief, often lasting only a few hours to a few days. These swarmers are ill-equipped for survival outside of the colony’s protected environment. They are particularly vulnerable to desiccation, or drying out, due to their soft bodies and lack of protection from the elements.
The swarming flight exposes the alates to an extremely high rate of predation from birds, bats, spiders, and other insects. Nature compensates for this mass mortality by releasing hundreds or thousands of individuals at once, ensuring that sheer numbers increase the odds of success for a few pairs. Most swarmers perish on the ground before they can find a suitable location or a mate.
Most winged termites that emerge will not survive the initial dispersal flight, becoming food for other creatures or succumbing to exhaustion. For the alates that do land, survival depends on a rapid transition to establishing a subterranean shelter. If they fail to pair up quickly or cannot find immediate access to moist soil or wood, their brief window of survival closes rapidly.
The Successful Outcome: Founding a New Colony
Only a small fraction of the original swarm successfully navigates the dangers of the dispersal flight and finds a partner. Once a male and female alate pair up, they land and immediately shed their wings, a process that marks their transition to a wingless royal pair, known as dealates. This symbolic and physical commitment signifies their new role as founders.
The newly formed royal pair then searches for a protected location, often a crevice in wood or an access point to moist soil, depending on the species. They work together to dig a small chamber, called the nuptial chamber, which serves as the initial home and nursery for their new colony. This sheltered environment is crucial for their long-term survival and reproduction.
Once sealed inside the chamber, the female becomes the Queen, and the male is the King, beginning a significantly longer stage of life. The Queen’s role is to lay the first small batch of eggs, and this initial group of offspring becomes the first worker termites of the new colony. The Queen can live for many years, sometimes decades, continuously laying eggs to grow the new colony.
What the Swarm Reveals About the Existing Infestation
The appearance of a termite swarm is one of the most visible signs that an established termite colony is already present. A colony must be at least three to five years old and contain tens of thousands of individuals before it can produce a swarm. Therefore, the swarm itself is not the start of a problem, but rather evidence of a long-standing one.
The location and timing of the swarm offer clues about the species involved. Subterranean termites, the most common and destructive type, often swarm in massive numbers during the spring or early summer, typically during the day after rain. If a subterranean swarm emerges inside a structure, it confirms that the parent colony has tunnels running beneath or within the building’s foundation.
Drywood termites tend to produce smaller swarms, sometimes with fewer than a hundred individuals, often swarming in the late summer or fall, sometimes in the evening. Unlike subterranean termites, drywood swarmers do not require ground contact and can emerge directly from infested wood inside a home, often leaving piles of discarded wings near windowsills. In either case, the swarm functions as a warning signal that a professional inspection is immediately necessary to locate and treat the source colony.