Termites species are far more diverse and abundant in South America than they are in North America. This is due to South America’s tropical environment, which is more hospitable to termites than North America’s temperate climate. Unlike North American termite species, there exists a number of mound-building termite species in South America. The mounds built by some South American species are considered by many to be awe inspiring sights, and tourists from all over the world travel to South American countries just to view these majestic mounds on location. For example, glowing termite mounds attract tourists to Emas National Park in Brazil. These mounds glow at night due to bioluminescent beetles burrowing into the sides of these mounds. Also, a town in Guyana called St Cuthbert’s Mission sees thousands of tourists visiting every year in order to appreciate the region’s picturesque flora and fauna as well as the many termite mounds. In order to increase eco-tourism in the town, local politicians had an eco-lodge constructed near the town’s Mahaica River. Unfortunately, the five million dollar eco-lodge has become infested with termites only one year after its construction ended.
The eco-lodge’s construction was facilitated by the United Nations Development Program and the former Ministry of Amerindian Affairs with the purpose of promoting wildlife and ecosystem preservation efforts. However, not one single visitor has entered the eco-lodge during its entire year of existence. Due to the termite infestation within the lodge, developers are hoping to salvage useful building materials for other construction projects. One developer is hoping that the town’s city council will allow him to remove the zinc sheets from the structure in order to use them for constructing new homes for the elderly and other needy residents. Sadly, most of the structure’s wood has become riddled with termites, which means that much of this wood will likely be used for nothing more than firewood.
Do you think that the lodge came to be infested with termites because construction developers skipped the application of preventative termiticides within the soil around the structures?
