Termites Termites are important wood-destroying pests in Michigan. The food of subterranean termites is largely cellulose and comes from many sources. In fact, termites will eat all materials made from plants or cellulose-containing plant products.
Subterranean termites are most abundant in moist, warm soils containing plenty of food.
Termites travel from nests in the soil through a brownish, corklike tube to their food supply. When, through control measures, the contact between the nest in the ground and the wood upon which they feed is broken, termites die. Termites feed on the inside of sills, studding, floors, subfloors, casings, baseboards, and other wood structures. They tunnel these parts of a house leaving in many cases only thin shelves of the harder part of the wood. Termites rarely appear on the surface except when they are winged and swarming, usually in April or May following a warm rain.