There are signs that a battle is brewing.

Like when a captain finds piles of dirt-like pellets on board his boat. The cause? South Florida’s termites. This common scenario leads to a call to local pest control company Dead Bug Edwards in Plantation, where general manager Kevin Bingham will proceed to check for insect trails, signs of damage and collects a sample of frass — the scientific name for termite poop.

Bingham is familiar with this skirmish and usually identifies the opponent on sight. In spring and summer in the Fort Lauderdale area, it is generally Asian subterranean, Formosan subterranean, or Indian drywood termites.

Owners often believe their boats are safe from ground termites, but not necessarily so, Bingham said. “A boat is a perfect storm for subterranean termites. Normally, their colony is in the ground, but they swarm and can find their way onto a boat.” Cracks and crevices offer passage on board during swarms. Termites can survive with bilge water or a leak, and stay off the ground in an aerial colony.

“They’ll eat anything cellulose,” Bingham said. “Termites have been known to eat cardboard boxes, paper towels, and toilet tissue. Anything made from wood.” Bingham feels his clients’ frustration, but can only answer, “Termites are God’s way of reclaiming wood.’” He checks in regularly at the headquarters of Thomas Chouvenc, associate professor of urban entomology with Fort Lauderdale Research and Education Center, University of Florida IFAS, in Davie.

This season has been busy. On March 25, for example, there were “billions of Asian subterranean termites flying in the sky of Fort Lauderdale at dusk,” Chouvenc said. “Every year, at this time of the year, this will happen again, forever.

These termites are part of our environment now.” A new colony just needs two termites to form — one male and one female, Chouvenc said. Fortunately, most winged termites fail to start a new colony, which typically takes about five years to mature.

“However, even 0.01 percent of a billion is still a lot of potential new established colonies, in trees, houses or boats,” he said.

Termites play a big part in South Florida where swarms may be attracted to city lights and start colonies inland. Each species has an annual dispersal flight season, with a peak of activity in March for the Asian subterranean termite, late April-early May for Formosan subterranean termites, and May-June for the Indian drywood termite.

Boats play a bigger role in termite transfer than most people realize. For the past 40 years in South Florida, several invasive species have been expanding their distribution in many urban and suburban areas. Some invasive termites were initially brought by boats decades ago, establishing colonies along waterways and expanding to new locations by boat. These species are spreading and some communities are more at risk than others (https://flrec.ifas.ufl. edu/termites-in-florida/termite-distribution/).

If you are in an at-risk area, it doesn’t matter if you live in a million-dollar or $200,000 home, your house, boat and trees are in jeopardy, Chouvenc said. Each species is treated differently, and pest control companies must list the type of termite on treatment contracts. “The possibility of misidentifying can cost you money,” Chouvenc said.

Boats have been, and continue to be, a major vector to take and spread termites around the world. Chouvenc encourages owners to inspect regularly to prevent damage and minimize the chance of spreading the pest to other communities. Formosan subterranean termites have traveled across the Southeast U.S. Asian subterranean termites were restricted to Southeast Florida until recently, when they were found in Tampa and Melbourne.

Now they are as far north as Bartow, located about 39 miles east of Tampa, where an infested boat was brought on a trailer and established a colony far from coastal waterways. A few years ago, Chouvenc’s team found Asian subterranean termites in Weston, about 18 miles from the coast. “How did they get to Weston? Termites can only fly about one block a year,” Chouvenc said. “The reason we found them so far from the main coastal waterways, is that, again, they were on a boat on a trailer.”

There is a silver lining as a lot of smaller boats are fiberglass with not much wood, so if the termites try to colonize, they might not find enough food to survive.

If termites are detected early, there is a possibility that the boat can be saved, Chouvenc said. Right now, everybody is a loser in the war against termites. “We actually lost the battle the moment they got here. There is no magic solution to make it all disappear. We have to handle this case by case. “They are a most remarkable and challenging foe,” he said. “They are smart, not necessarily with a brain, but socially and how they work and find food.”

Raising awareness is critical to help reduce the potential for damage by catching a problem early. Invasive termites are an insect version of a hurricane, but in very slow motion, he said. Because of the long period to reach maturity, there is an absence of urgency. Meanwhile, the infestations continue. “Who knows what the next species will be?” Chouvenc said.