Collaborative efforts of the North American Termite Survey (NATS) - PMPs, government, academia, and citizen scientists

The invasive Formosan subterranean termite, Coptotermes formosanus (Shiraki), has continued to expand its range in the southern United States over the last 60 years. It was recognized that there had been no recent large-scale effort to track this spread and relay findings to interested stakeholders (e.g. professional pest management industry, academia, government, general public). Furthermore, there has been little collaboration and communication between Pest Management Professionals (PMPs), governmental agencies, academia, and citizen scientists regarding confirmed collections from outside areas known to have “established” populations of this species. The North American Termite Survey (NATS) working group was founded in 2024 as part of a U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) grant funded by the Southern Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Center in response to this issue. This presentation will provide general information on the NATS group, as well highlight how collaborations arising from this group have already expanded the known distribution of this pestiferous species in the United States.