When drywood termite swarmers fly, they look for another home where they can reproduce, starting new colonies. Once they find a place, they break off their wings and enter the structure through small openings in the wood. As their colony grows, each one does its duties. The workers go and search for food—these are responsible for the vast amount of damage to your home. The soldiers protect the colony from other insects. Signs you may have drywood termites are piles of pellets that look similar to sawdust, or wings that are often noted on windowsills.

Subterranean termites, like drywood, also swarm in search for a place to start new colonies. But unlike drywood, subterranean termites usually live in soil, outside the house. They enter wood framing by tubes, essentially made of mud. These tubes lengthen from the soil to floor or through any wood which is in direct contact with soil. Subterranean termites are also capable of penetrating cracks in concrete down to 1/64th of an inch.

Dampwood termites usually nest in wood that is steadily dampened. Like drywood and subterranean termites, they also build colonies with groups of termites assigned to different tasks.

These consist of carpenter ants, wood boring beetles (also known as powder post beetles), and fungus.