Frass

Description

Dust-like residue produced by insects, particularly wood boring varieties, such as Powderpost beetles, Termites, and Carpenter ants. Frass contains fine wood powder and excrement. While it is a sign of infestation, it is also considered desirable as a fertilizer due to its nutrient content.

Images

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  Ambrosia beetle frass

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  Drugstore beetle frass

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  Japanese Longhorn beetle frass

Resources and Citations

• Dictionary of Building Preservation, Ward Bucher, ed., John Wiley & Sons, Inc., New York City, 1996
• Random House, Webster's Encyclopedic Unabridged Dictionary of the English Language, Grammercy Book, New York, 1997
• AMOL reCollections Glossary - http://amol.org.au/recollections/7/f/htm
• Wikipedia: Frass Accessed July 2025