On time – and yet right when you least expect it – these teeming termites are back and invading the homes and businesses of the New Orleans subway after dark.
Cellphone videos on social media showed the animals in flight again – huddling street lights in a barrage of translucent wings – while those with no photographic evidence went on Twitter to complain about an evening tarnished by their annual, unwanted arrival .
The termites swarm in New Orleans tonight. @WWLTV pic.twitter.com/m897sQseqt
– Paul Murphy (@PMurphyWWL) May 11, 2021
Christopher Bannan, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in New Orleans, said forecasters couldn’t spot colonies on radar, but that didn’t mean they didn’t crawl to the walls of residents’ homes Monday night.
“It’s that time of year,” said Bannan.
New Orleans: Where to Need Blackout Curtains For Some Days To Cover The Morning Sun And The Termites That Night. Have a good trip everyone.
– Jane “NET zero is NOT zero” Patton (@soopajane) May 11, 2021
The radar was busy detecting the patch of rain moving through the area. Severe weather is expected to reign on Tuesday and Wednesday after the bad weather that led to road flooding on Monday.
The swarming termite season usually starts in April and can drag on until the end of June, said University of Florida research entomologist Nan-Yao Su.
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@MargaretOrr There are here !!! UGH🙀😬😑🪰 # termites #covington #NOLA pic.twitter.com/9jgSfC3T65
– Margaret Early (@lecorgne) May 11, 2021
One reason these pests make the pilgrimage to New Orleans annually is because the city is overcrowded and a termite colony of 10 million or more insects has plenty to eat.
Termites swarm! Light from NOLA!
– NOLA Celiac (@celiacdiary) May 11, 2021
Some of Su’s tips on how to deal with this harassment are taken from a previous article by Mark Schleifstein:
Baits are much more effective than liquid pesticides.
Research by some of Su’s students found that insects that eat bait return to the nest, visit the king and queen, and die at their “feet”, forcing the two reproductive members of the colony to move. After being surrounded by dead workers several times, the king and queen also die.
Liquid pesticides, used to soak the soil around homes, kill termites directly. However, some newer versions also act as slow killers, allowing termites to bring some of the venom back to the nest for others to use.
“If you’re just spraying pesticides and trying to get them off your house, just walk next door and then maybe come back to your house next year,” he said.
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