Farmers’ perception of termite infestation, economic importance, and control practices in Dodota district, Southeast Ethiopia

BACKGROUND: Termites play important ecological roles in soil formation and nutrient cycling, but they also cause significant damage to crops and rural infrastructure in sub-Saharan Africa. Despite their economic importance, information on farmers' perceptions, indigenous knowledge, and local termite management practices remains limited in many termite-prone areas of Ethiopia. Therefore, this study assessed farmers' perceptions of termite infestation, its impacts, and indigenous management practices in Dodota district, Southeast Ethiopia. METHODS: A household questionnaire survey was conducted using 120 randomly selected households determined through Cochran's sampling formula at a 95% confidence level and 5% margin of error. Field data were collected from April to May 2025 through household interviews and focus group discussions. Descriptive statistical analysis was performed using SPSS version 26 software. The study assessed farmers' knowledge of termite biology, perceptions of termite impacts, crop susceptibility, indigenous control practices, and the ecological importance of termites in the agricultural landscape. RESULTS: Most respondents were male (88.3%), married (95.8%), and within the middle-aged category of 34-60 years (65.8%). All farmers were aware of termites, and 91.7% correctly associated mound construction with termite activity. Farmers used three major criteria to identify different termite castes: body size (66.7%), body structure (16.7%), and feeding tunnels (10.0%). The major negative impacts reported by farmers included land consumption due to mound formation (43.3%), crop destruction (36.7%), and damage to homes (13.3%). Farmers also recognized several beneficial effects of termites, including improvement of soil porosity (22.5%), soil moisture retention (15.8%), and soil fertility (5.8%). Indigenous termite control practices included application of wood ash (6.7%), smoking termite mounds (13.3%), addition of organic matter (16.7%), destruction of mounds and removal of queens (6.7%), and promotion of natural predators (9.2%). CONCLUSIONS: Farmers possessed substantial indigenous knowledge of termite occurrence, impacts, and management practices. Integrating this knowledge with scientifically validated and environmentally sustainable approaches could improve termite management in smallholder farming systems. Future research should focus on evaluating indigenous practices and developing locally adaptable integrated termite management strategies.