They didn't seem to be squishable. Yes, they did show up in a cluster as shown in my picture. It happened three times in the same spot yesterday but hasn't happened so far today. I'm kind of freaking out if they are really termite droppings. Does it really look like that would be the case? Thanks.

This is a global pest, one of the species of grain beetles. They infest stored grains, seeds, flour, etc., all over the world. You should see the little larvae in your seed collection....they are what feed on the seeds. Commercially, seed warehouses are treated with horticultural or food grade diatomaceous earth (DE). Non food seeds will be chemically treated in storage. Consumers can bring flours, pasta, bird seed, etc., home and store them in the freezer or fridge (after a freezer treatment). Can't recommend that with viable seed. DE is the way to go when you collect and store seeds in the future. Food/horticultural grade DE is edible, by the way, and can be used to protect coriander seeds even if you use them as a personal culinary spice.

When I got mine from a bad load of potting soil had to go with the full guns to eradicate them. I grow indoors and prob harder to get rid of- I hope you don't have them to the extent I did. One thing is that the adults do no damage. It's the larvae in the soil that nibble roots, and the adults lay those eggs once a week. I ended up cutting back on water, using neem oil, gnatrol, and the yellow sticky tape- but only the kind that can be poked in the soil. The gnats hang out in the top layer of the soil and the so hanging the tapes on the branches is less effective. If you don't kill the larvae you won't have complete control. Took me 3 months to get fully rid myself of them. I hope just the first steps and getting rid of the mulch will be all you need.

Your insect in the pictures is a Soldier Beetle, perhaps in the genus Polemius. These beetles feed on other insects, nectar, and pollen, they do not chew leaves. The damage to those leaves could be from a variety of other insects; try checking at night also.