wood-eating
Devouring tree matter
Wood-eating describes organisms that consume wood as food.
The term applies primarily to insects like termites and beetles, but also to certain fungi and marine creatures.
Wood-eating pests can destroy a house's structural integrity in just a few years.
The technical term is xylophagous.
Wood-devouring social insect
- woodwormTimber-eating beetle larva
- carpenter antWood-boring social insect
- beetleHard-winged insect
- borerTunneling tool or insect
deathwatch beetle · longhorn beetle · bark beetle · horntail · woodboring · infestation · frass · galleries
Organic breakdown process
- decayGradual organic breakdown
- decompositionBreakdown into simpler parts
- white rotFungal wood decomposition
- brown rotFungal fruit disease
soft rot · lignin · cellulose breakdown · mycelium · shelf fungus · polypore · saprophyte · deadwood
termite
Wood-devouring social insect
- woodwormTimber-eating beetle larva
- carpenter antWood-boring social insect
- beetleHard-winged insect
borer · deathwatch beetle · longhorn beetle · bark beetle · horntail · woodboring · infestation · frass · galleries · larvae
rot
Organic breakdown process
- decayGradual organic breakdown
- decompositionBreakdown into simpler parts
- white rotFungal wood decomposition
brown rot · soft rot · lignin · cellulose breakdown · mycelium · shelf fungus · polypore · saprophyte · deadwood · forest floor
shipworm
Wood-boring marine mollusk
- hull damageHarm to vessel exterior
- boringFailing to engage interest
- pilingsEmbedded structural columns
driftwood · waterlogged · saltwater · wharf · fouling · bivalve · mollusc
wood-eatingcarnivorous
Feeding on animal flesh
meat-eating · flesh-eating · herbivorous · insectivorous · fish-eating
wood, eat, eating, woods, wooded, wooden, woodsy, woodland, woodlands