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RESISTANCE OF BANGKIRAI (SHOREA LAEVIS)
TO ATTACK BY
THE FORMOSAN SUBTERRANEAN TERMITE
Construction materials used in Hawaii and other tropical and subtropical regions are exposed to severe risk of attack by subterranean termites. The Formosan subterranean termite, Coptotermes formosamis Shiraki, in particular is a severe pest in many parts of the world, and other Coptotermes species are serious pests in the South Pacific, Australia, and Southeast Asia. In Hawaii, this termite is responsible for over $ 100 million in costs for control and damage repairs each year. In these regions, the ability of building materials to resist termite attack is a critical factor in architectural design and construction decisions.
Naturally durable woods represent an alternative to the use of preservative-treated wood in building construction. For example. Western red cedar (Thuja plicala), Alaska cedar (Cliamaecyparis nooikaiensts), redwood (Sequoia sempervitae) and teak (Tecfoiia grandis) ail exhibit some degree of resistance to termite attack (Grace & Yamamolo 1991, Grace et al. 1999). Recent surveys of tree species grown in Hawaii (Grace et al. 1996) and in Malaysia (Grace et al. 1999) also identified several different trees with potential for greater use in the tropics.
Sliorea laevis Ricil. (family Diptocarpaceae) is a dense tropical hardwood species with favorable strength properties that reported to have some degree of resistance to both insects and decay fungi (Soerianegara & Lemmens 1994; Indonesia Dept. of Forestry, undated; Lopez 1984). This rather dark and attractive wood is known as Bangkirai in Indonesia, and Balau kumus in Malaysia. As with almost all durable tree species, only the heartwood of bangkirat is reputed to be durable, and the sapwood does not carry any such resistance. This need to differentiate between heart wood and sapwood in specifying naturally durable woods for construction purposes is important to bear in mind. In recent laboratory evaluations, we found that heartwood of both Hinoki (Japanese cypress) and Alaska cedar (also known as yellow cypress) was very resistant to termite attack, but the sapwood was extremely susceptible (unpublished). Fortunately, most tropical durable trees are largely heartwood.
In the present study, wafers, cut from bangkirai heartwood lumber (of Indonesian origin) were evaluated for resistance to attack by Formosan subterranean termites in a rigorous laboratory test (American Wood-Preservers' Association Standard Method El-97). This lest method consisted of both a no-choice (or single choice) assay, in which termites were provided with only a single sample of either bangkirai or susceptible Douglas-fir upon winch to feed; and a two-choice assay in which termites had the option of feeding upon either bangkirai or a Douglas-fir wafer. In both cases, each replicate with each individual wood sample was exposed to 400 termites for a 4-week (28-day) period. This test represents severe termite exposure, since the termites are freshly collected from field locations immediately before the test, and then kept under warm and humid conditions ideal for survival and feeding. Typically, Douglas-fir wafers are virtually destroyed in the 4-week test period.
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Part 2: Materials and methods
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