Average Swarms, Call Volumes

A nearly equal number of PMPs said the volume of termite-related service calls last year either increased (36 percent) or remained the same (37 percent) from 2021, found the 2023 PCT State of Termite Market survey, which was sponsored by BASF and conducted by Readex Research.

Termite swarms, alone, did not make the phone ring or text ding. Most PMPs (53 percent) said the 2022 termite swarm season was average; 39 percent said it was below average, up 10 percent from 2021.

“Termite swarms, you hear this throughout the industry, aren’t what they used to be,” said Henry B. Fernandez Jr., president and manager of Asash Termite & Pest Control, Laredo, Texas.

Termite activity — and demand for termite service — relied in part on warm temperatures, adequate moisture and calm winds. Only 26 percent said conducive weather in their markets last year increased demand for their termite control services.

Severe weather events took a toll. “We had two hurricanes back-to-back two years ago and a lot of those trees that were heavily infested with termites blew over and that material was then hauled off, burned or whatever,” said Blaine Celestaine, owner, Abatol Al’s Pest Control, Lake Charles, La.

“We haven’t had the big banner Formosan termite swarms because of that,” said Celestaine, who expected it to take several years for termite populations to rebound to pre-storm levels. He experienced a similar cycle after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita hit the area in 2005.

While termites remain a major problem in his market, sales are driven by the Formosan termite swarms that occur in May. “If the swarm is not bad, it’s not going to motivate nearly as many calls,” he said.

In addition to Formosan termites, Celestaine controls native subterranean termites and, on occasion, drywood termites.

Nineteen percent said it is common in their markets to find more than one termite species infesting a structure; 14 percent said they were encountering/treating more Formosan termite infestations.