Termite Concern...

[cyanide]

Hi all and thanks for reading!
just got my girl a new stick for her enclosure. My step dad found it for me when he was doing some trade work, I sawed some length off so I could wedge it in her tank. The length I took off is still on my patio and I just noticed odd noises coming from it - some sort of termite or bug I think?? Like a chirping/clicking/knawing sound. I didn't treat the part I put in the tank. Haven't noticed any noises or bugs in with her. What should I do?

[toddnbecka]

Burn the piece you cut off and see what comes out, lol. Not likely to be any danger to animals if it lives in/eats wood, but could be a problem in the house.

[cyanide]

Thanks for the response!
Haha good plan; I'm not even sure what a termite even looks like! My only concern was for the python so I'll check out the cut off length and keep an ear/eye out for anything in the tank. Her tank is on my bedroom so I'll definitely hear anything happening at night!

[Jim Smith]

I'm pretty sure it's not termites, but rather a large wood-boring beetle. They can be remarkable loud as they chew there way through a piece of wood. Either way, I would probably not use that piece of wood unless it was something really special. It's just not worth bringing pests into the house; IMHO.

[Minkness]

What you should also do is bake the peice that's in the tank. If it fits in the oven just set it to about 400 and leave it for an hour. This will kill any crawlers tat may be inside.

[toddnbecka]

Termites are actually quite small, and don't make noise themselves. Our last house was infested with them, and they had pretty well hollowed out a very large wooden beam that the rest of the house was resting on above the foundation. One night I heard this BOOM several times, sounded like someone was stomping VERY hard on the wooden floor. A few days later I noticed that the baseboard trim was visibly higher than the floorboards along the wall. Came to realize that the damaged wooden beam was collapsing under the weight of the rest of the house, and that was what had made all the noise. Termites look something like tiny ants, swarmers look almost identical to flying ants. The visible difference is that flying ants have a "waist" separating the abdomen, termites don't.

[cyanide]

Thanks for the replies all! Makes more sense to be a beetle as it was very loud. No noise from the tank. It hurts my vegan soul but snake/house safety more important than a beetles. I will bake it, it should fit in my oven that's a great idea! To clarify- 400℉? (I am Australian and Celsius is a dangerous assumption to make haha)

[reptiledude987]

Baking it in the oven works well if it fits. If it dosent you can also soak it in a bleach solution in the bath tub. Just be sure to rinse it very well and let it dry before putting it in.

[toddnbecka]

Ya, 400 F, don't think an oven would do 400 C in any case. I'd probably do 350, more than enough to kill anything lurking in the wood. Paper burns at 451, so definitely don't go much higher than 400.