By Raquel Shulman

Take a walk down any New Orleans residential street, and you are destined to see it—a house wrapped in a vibrant striped tarp. No, it is not a pop-up circus. Instead, it is any subtropical homeowner’s worst nightmare: the last resort for a termite infestation.

“There are two major groups: Formoson Subterranean termites and Drywood termites, with several species in these groups,” said Dr. Keith Clay, professor and chair of Tulane University’s Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology. Being himself a victim of these destructive pests, Clay has battled termites in both New Orleans and Florida. 

Out of the two mentioned groups, “the more problematic ones are the Drywood termites that do not have to go into the ground, so they can spend their entire lives up in your attic… You do not see them, and you can’t get to them very easily,” said Clay.  Instead of having to retreat in the soil of a house’s foundation, these termites work tirelessly at destroying wood. As a result, extermination becomes more elaborate, leading to the eventual need for gas fumigation. Anecdotally known as tenting, the process is named after the many large striped tents, joined together, that completely encapsulate the house. Covered in signs warning people of the deadly poisons inside, the site is eerie. 

“There is a lot of hype on tenting by the pesticide industry,” said Clay while explaining the outrageous proposed pricing for the fumigation of his Florida home—his first experience with termites. Causing panic, tenting companies could sell fear and influence homeowners to resort to gas fumigation before exhausting all of the other, less expensive, options first. Now, he explained, the price has lowered, and gouging has mostly stopped. One of the reasons for this could be the increased normalization of tenting. As homes get older, the wood decays—creating the perfect habitat for termites to expedite the deterioration process. This makes historic New Orleans homes an even more ideal host. 

Adding another layer of complexity, the infestation takes flight once the swarming season occurs between Mother’s Day and Memorial Day, as Dr. Clay put it. This becomes apparent by looking up at street lights late at night. From this view, the eerie massive ‘cloud-like’ swarms are visible. “We knew we were fighting these guys when I walked into my home office one night, and the lights were on. It was like I was walking into a nightmare. There were tens of thousands of termites swarming in this room inside my house,” said Clay regarding his own termite saga. “We had to have the termite people out so frequently. And I am sure they didn’t get rid of them, so we sold our house… The writing was on the wall that the house was under attack.” Describing the infestation as an ‘attack’ is no exaggeration. Comparing tenting to the COVID-19 vaccine, Dr. Clay explained that once a house has been tented, it will often need to be tented many more times in the future. However, just like with a vaccine, the homeowner receives a glimpse of relief knowing they will be safe for at least the time being. This is how the cycle starts. 

“The clue is that you often find the wings because when they swarm, they develop wings, they mate, and then move on to colonize new houses. After they swarm, their wings fall off. So check your windowsills for wings,” said Clay. The hope here, is that by spotting the wings on your windowsill, homeowners can catch these infestations before tenting is needed as their last resort. This way, the costly, infamous striped tent does not have to show up at your doorstep—avoiding the biggest nightmare becoming your reality.