Termite baiting systems are being used successfully in managing or eliminating subterranean termite colonies. During a baiting program, human induced disturbances may affect termites from revisiting the bait monitoring stations. Laboratory studies were carried out to identify the behavioral response of avoidance of Coptotermes gestroi (Wasmann) collected from Oahu, Hawaii. The laboratory experiment set-up consisted of two containers connected to one another by a tube and each container was filled with approximately 100g of sand. A piece of rubber-wooden block was placed into the sand. One hundred termite workers and five termite soldiers were added to each container. Various treatments, including crushed ten termite workers or soldiers, were performed on the treated (left) site. Termite distributions and the total tunneling area were recorded and analysed at both treated and untreated sites. Coptotermes gestroi was found to significantly avoid and leave the treated areas after the treatment of crushed soldiers. The majority of the termites were observed to have moved into the untreated dishes on Day 1 post-treatment. The components of the soidier head and frontal gland that might be causing the avoidance behavior were identified using GC-MS and discussed.
