Termite field evaluations in hawaii: A brief review of methods and issues
IRG/WP 95-10131
J K Grace
The severe termite hazard in Hawaii, principally due to the presence of the Formosan subterranean termite (Coptotermes formosanus Shiraki), has long required the use of preservative-treated lumber in building construction. This hazard has also favored and stimulated field research in Hawaii on methods of protection from termite attack, including evaluation of soil insecticides and treated wood under rigorous conditions. The fact that Formosan subterranean termites are not distributed randomly and homogeneously across a given field site, as with fungal spores, but forage in a rather unpredictable fashion, has lead to the use of a number of different methods of field evaluation in order to "accelerate" termite attack or simulate conditions of end use. Rationale, advantages and disadvantages are discussed in this review.