CA BRANCH 3 Structural Pest Control Exam Questions With 100% Pass

CA BRANCH 3 Structural Pest Control Exam Questions With 100% Pass /. How can you tell the difference between wood suffering from brown rot and wood suffering from white rot? - Answer-Wood infested with brown rot typically: • appears dark brown, • shows excessive shrinkage, • develops cross-grain cracking, and • can be crushed easily to form a brownish powder. Wood infested with white rot on the other hand, often: • appears whiter than normal, • shows normal shrinkage, • does not crack across the grain, • is spongy to the touch. /.What is the difference between the stains caused by stain (sapstain) fungi vs. mold fungi? - Answer-Sapstain fungi live on the starch in wood cells. These fungi may discolor the sapwood entirely or in patches. This stain is deep within the wood and cannot be removed by brushing or planing. On the other hand, discoloration caused by mold fungi is superficial. This means that you can usually remove the discoloration by brushing or planing. However, on hardwoods with open pores (very large and visible vessels) such as the oaks, the surface molds may cause stains that are too deep to remove easily. /.How can you distinguish between winged termites and winged ants? - Answer-Look at their antennae, waists, and wings. Winged termites have straight antennae, thick waists, and wings that are equal in size and shape. Winged ants have bent antennae, narrow waists, and forewings that are larger than the hind wings. /.Name the four basic castes of termites. Describe the basic function(s) of each caste. - Answer-Workers - gather food, maintain the galleries, tend the young, and groom the other termites. Soldiers - guard the colony against predators. Primary reproductives - "swarmers" that fly out of their colonies to start new colonies of their own. They are the future kinds and queens of new colonies. Secondary reproductives - supplement egg production in the presence of the king and queen and can take over the egg laying if the queen dies or begins to fail. /.Do subterranean termites live entirely within wood? Why or why not? - Answer-No, because they require a constant source of moisture to survive. However, they can live in wood with less than 20% moisture by getting their moisture from the ground. They transport this moisture through flattened, earthen shelter tubes that serve as passageways from the soil to the infested wood. /.How do subterranean termites most often infest wood in buildings? - Answer-They gain entry through untreated wood that touches or is close to the ground, particularly at porches, steps, and terraces. They can also infest buildings through cracks or voids in foundations or concrete floors that make it easy for termites to reach wood that is not close to the soil. /.Describe the frass pellets of drywood termites. - Answer-They are small and cylindrical with six depressions on the sides. These pellets are unique to drywood termites and are used for identification. /.Where do drywood termites most often occur? - Answer-In southern Florida, southern California, and along the southern gulf coast of the United States. /.Do drywood termites live entirely within wood? Why or why not? - Answer-Yes, because they require little moisture (wood MCs as low as 5%). Unlike subterranean termites, drywood termites have no connection with the soil. /.List several ways you can protect wood from termites. - Answer-To protect wood from subterranean termites, you can: • apply insecticides to the soil around buildings, and • avoid using wood mulches next to buildings. To protect wood from subterranean and drywood termites, you can: • use physical barriers on foundations, and • use properly preserved wood, which makes it undesirable as a food source. /.Describe the frass of powderpost beetles. - Answer-Powderpost beetle frass appears as a fine wood dust or powder. Slight jarring of infested wood can cause the frass to sift from holes. This is a sure sign of a powderpost beetle infestation. In addition, the frass of anobiid beetles has a distinctive hotdog bun shape. /.For most wood-boring beetles, what life stage causes the most damage to wood by boring inside the wood? - Answer-The larvae (grub). The exception is the ambrosia beetle in which the adult bores within the wood. /.How do ambrosia beetles damage wood? - Answer-They degrade wood by staining it, by creating numerous entrance holes (pinholes), and by boring inside the wood. /.What type of wood does each group of wood boring beetles discussed in this manual prefer? - Answer-Ambrosia beetles - green logs or green lumber; softwoods and hardwoods. Powderpost beetles - seasoned lumber and timbers, particularly joists, sub flooring, hardwood flooring, sill plates, and interior trim; softwoods and hardwoods. Old house borers - seasoned wood; softwoods such as pine, spruce, and fir. Flatheaded borers - living trees as well as recently felled and dead standing softwood trees; rustic structures and some manufactured products. /.How do powderpost beetles get their name? - Answer-In the tunnels that they bore, powderpost beetle larvae leave undigested wood particles called "frass." Frass usually appears as a fine wood dust or powder. When you cut or break infested wood, the interior reveals galleries filled with frass. Slight jarring of the wood often causes a fine powder to sift from the holes. These are all sure signs of a powderpost beetle infestation. /.Which type of powderpost beetle prefers hardwoods? - Answer-Lyctids. /.Describe the differences in the frass produced by the three different groups of powderpost beetles described in this manual. - Answer-Lyctids - very fine and powdery frass; also very abundant. Anobiids - coarse and powdery frass; also contains distinctive fecal pellets shaped like hotdog buns. Bostrichids - grainy or mealy frass tightly packed in galleries. /.The adult of which type of powderpost beetle has a humpbacked appearance? - Answer-Bostrichids. /.Describe the appearance of an adult old house borer. - Answer-Adults are about 3/4 inch long and grayish brown to black. They have two white patches on the wing covers. /.Do wood-boring beetles structurally damage the wood that they infest? - Answer-One generation of beetle damage does not usually weaken wood. But, boring of generation after generation can reduce the strength and integrity of wood. /.What are exit holes? Why are they important to pest managers? - Answer-An exit hole is the location where an adult beetle has emerged from wood. Exit holes range in size and shape depending on the species of beetle that made them. Because adult beetles are rarely seen, exit holes are often the best and only way to identify the infesting beetle. /.Describe the difference between the exit holes of powderpost beetles and the exit holes of old house borers. - Answer-Powderpost beetle exit holes are generally small (about 1/32 to 5/16 inch wide) and perfectly round. Old house borer exit holes are larger (about 1/4 to 3/8 inch wide) and irregularly shaped (often oval). /.True or False: Old house borers attack only aged wood. - Answer-False. /.Do carpenter ants use wood for shelter or food? Describe the type of wood they prefer for this purpose? - Answer-Shelter. They generally seek soft, moist wood in which to establish their nests. You can often find them in old stumps and other wood that has been softened by decay. They also attack wood in service such as utility poles. In structures, they often nest in porch columns, roofs, windowsills, hollow-core doors,