Formosan vs Drywood Termites in Central Florida

What is a Formosan termite?

The Formosan subterranean termite, Coptotermes formosanus, is an invasive species in Florida, first recorded at Hallandale. UF/IFAS reports it mainly in dense urban areas, and a 2026 study says it is spreading farther than predicted.

Formosan termites are the species homeowners hear about most, and they are often talked about as if they were everywhere at once. The fuller picture comes from UF/IFAS: the species is established in urban Florida and still spreading, and that spread is documented in a study of records from 1990 to 2025.

Spread across the state is not the same as presence at a particular address. The sources this site relies on do not confirm Formosan termites in Orange County, so this guide does not place them in Orlando. That question belongs to an inspection and a sample identification, not to a statewide map.

Colonies can forage up to about 100 metres. A technician who finds activity in one part of a building should therefore look at the whole structure and its immediate surroundings, rather than stopping at the spot where the damage shows.

When you read about the species, check the date of each source. Statements about where a termite has been found age quickly, and a record from a few years ago may not describe the present position, so treat older material as background rather than as a current map.

What is a drywood termite?

Drywood termites are a separate group from the subterranean species, and in Florida the West Indian drywood termite is the species the sources name as the main drywood termite. It is the first species to check when drywood activity is suspected.

The practical difference is in how the activity is found and where it shows. Subterranean and drywood termites are different categories, and a treatment that suits one is not automatically the right fit for the other. That is why an inspection report should name the species rather than just the word termite.

A report that says drywood termites without naming a species, or without saying how the species was identified, leaves out the information you need to judge the plan. Ask the inspector which species was found, and whether the identification was made from the insects, from the damage, or from a sample.

Drywood activity can be easy to miss because the damage may sit inside the wood. Ask the inspector what they checked and what they could not reach, and write those limits into the scope so they are not forgotten later.

How do you tell them apart?

You tell them apart by identifying the insect, not by the damage alone. UF/IFAS offers free sample identification and a public Termite Distribution Map, and an inspector should name the species and the basis for naming it.

Identification starts with a specimen. Collect a few insects or wings in a sealed container, label the date and the location, and keep the sample until the question is settled. UF/IFAS offers free sample identification, so the question can be answered independently of any sales conversation.

The distribution map helps a reader see which species are reported where in the state. It is a planning tool and not a substitute for an inspection, because a map cannot tell you what is inside a particular wall or under a particular floor.

When a technician names a species, ask how they confirmed it. A good answer names the features they checked, the pattern of activity and any sample sent away for identification. A species named without any stated basis should be read as an opinion, not an identification.

If you send a sample, include the date, the type of building and the room, and say whether the insects were found inside or outside. Those details help the identifier, and they cost nothing to write down.

Does the species change the treatment?

Yes. A subterranean plan and a drywood plan are scoped differently, because the species and the way the activity is found change the work. The species named in the report is the first input to a sensible treatment scope.

The scope is the document that matters most. A subterranean termite plan should say which areas were treated and how the work was approached. If the species named is Formosan, the plan should also address the wider area a colony could reach, given foraging of up to about 100 metres.

A drywood plan is scoped around the wood where activity is found. Ask the technician to show you, on a sketch or in photographs, where the infested wood is and what the method will be, and whether a follow-up inspection is included.

Compare plans by species. Two quotes that name different species, or one that names none, cannot be compared fairly, so settle the identification before you compare the figures. The figure is confirmed on site once the species and the scope are agreed.

Record the species on every document from the first visit onward. A plan, an invoice and a later inspection that disagree about the species make it hard to know what was actually treated, and that mismatch is far easier to prevent at the start than to untangle after the work is finished.

What should an inspection report say?

An inspection report should name the species, state where activity was found and what could not be reached, and give the basis for the identification. In a Florida real-estate transaction, a written report must be made by a qualified person and written on FDACS Form 13645.

A useful report separates three things: what was seen, what was concluded from it, and what was not checked. A report that blurs these together makes the plan hard to judge, because you cannot tell which parts are findings and which are assumptions.

The inspector should hold the WDO inspector designation on the state identification card. Under Chapter 482, reports for real-estate transactions must be made by a qualified person and written on Form 13645. Licensees may not add disclaimers to that form, so read it in full before you rely on it.

If you are buying a building, the report is a negotiating document as well as a technical one. Ask the inspector to walk you through the findings rather than only sending the form, and ask what they would recommend next if the decision were yours.

What should I ask before choosing a plan?

Ask which species was identified and how, what the plan covers, what was not reached, and whether a follow-up is included. Put the answers in writing and confirm the figure on site before any work begins.

Start with the identification. A plan that treats the wrong species, or treats a building without knowing the species, is hard to justify later. Ask whether a sample was sent for identification and what the result said.

Then ask about the scope. Which parts of the structure are included? What does the plan say about the surrounding area? Is there a follow-up visit, and when would it take place? A clear answer is a good sign, and a vague one is a reason to ask again before agreeing.

A call to (855) 974-4733 is a sensible first step, and the technician can explain the sequence before anyone visits. Ask for the figure to be confirmed on site after the inspection and written down before any work starts.

How should a homeowner read an identification result?

An identification result is only as useful as the sample and the question behind it. Ask what was sent, what was concluded, and whether the result names a species or only a group, because those three answers decide what the plan can rely on.

A result that names a species should say what it was based on. A sample in good condition is easier to identify than a few fragments, and a note recording where and when the sample was taken gives the identifier context. If the result names only a group, such as subterranean termites, the species question is still open, and the plan should say so.

Ask for the result in writing and keep it with the inspection report. An identification that lives in a text message or a verbal summary is hard to check later, when the question of species comes back during a sale, a repair or a claim.

Do not read an identification as a verdict on the whole building. It answers a question about one sample. The inspection answers the question about the structure, and the two should be read together rather than treated as interchangeable.