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Ants
Pavement Ants |
Little Black Ants |
Pharoah Ant | Odorous House Ant |
Slave Raider Ants | Corn Field Ants
Pavement Ants
This ant gets its name from commonly locating its nest in or under cracks
in pavement. They are small (1/8 to 1/16 inches long) black-brown ant, with
paler legs and antennae. The abdomen is all black. Readily visible on the
head and thorax are parallel lines or ridges, which do not differ in color
from the cuticle, but give the cuticle a lined texture. There is a pair of
small spines at the back of the thorax, and the body has a sparse array of
small hairs all over it. The pavement ant is common throughout the Atlantic
coast and Midwestern United States, and on the West Coast. The ant is an
occasional pest in the Southern United states. Nests are usually found
outdoors under stones, next to buildings and under cracks of pavement,
although they are occasionally found in walls, under floors, and in
insulation. Pavement ants can be a particular nuisance around homes with
slab-on-grade construction. Foragers enter buildings through cracks in the
slab and similar openings. This slow moving ant enters buildings in search
of food with greasy and sweet materials being preferred.
Habits: Inside, pavement ants will occasionally nest in walls, in
insulation, and under floors. The most likely place is in ground-level
masonry walls of the foundation and especially near some heat source in the
winter. They often follow pipes which come through slabs for access to upper
floors of buildings. Outside, these ants typically nest under stones, in
cracks in pavement, and next to buildings. They enter buildings through
cracks in the slab and walls, slab expansion joints, and the natural
openings of buildings. Although not aggressive, workers can bite and sting.
These ants feed on almost anything including insects, honeydew, seeds, plant
sap,
Biology: Winged reproductives appear outside primarily in June and
July, but may emerge anytime inside including during the winter months.
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Little Black Ants
This is a very small (1/15 inches long), jet black colored ant found in
all states. Nests are normally located outdoors in relatively open areas. Thes ants will also nest in rotten wood, woodwork and masonry of buildings.
Colonies may be very large. Most of their feeding is on plant secretions,
but they will occasionally invade houses for food. once inside, they feed on
sweets, meats, bread, grease, vegetables and fruit.
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Pharoah Ant
Pharoah ants being extremely small can be found in a diversity of places
appearing suddenly. They have a wide range of foraging and their nest are
usually well hidden. They are very persistent. They go from egg to adult in
about 45 days. Colonies are massive often containing hundreds of thousands
of workers and several queens.
Appearance: They are very small: about 1/16" long, yellowish red
with dark marking on the abdomen
Habits: Inside they are usually found in the kitchen and bathrooms
,but workers are seen trailing along window sills, and baseboards. Recommend
Professional treatment. Do-It-Yourself treatments with pesticides could make
the problem worse.
Diet: The have a wide variety of food choices, including sweets,
protein and greases.
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Odorous House Ant
The pungent, "rotten-coconutlike" odor given off when this ant is crushed
gives it its name. It is a native species and is found throughout the United
States.
Appearance: Workers monomorphic, about 1/16-1/8" (2.4-3.25 mm)
long. Body brown to black. Antenna 12-segmented, without a club. Thorax
lacks spines, profile unevenly rounded. Pedicel 1-segmented, with small
node/segment hidden/concealed from view from above by base of gaster. Gaster
with anal opening slitlike, lacking circlet of hairs. Stinger absent.
Workers emit a disagreeable, rotten, coconut-like odor.
Habits: Inside, these ants usually construct their nests in wall
voids especially around hot water pipes and heaters, in crevices around
sinks, cupboards, etc. These ants prefer sweets but also eat foods with high
protein content and grease such as meats and cheese.
Outside, they are often found in the nest of larger ants, in exposed soil,
but mostly under objects. Workers feed on insects, seek honeydew and plant
secretions, and even feed on seeds. They are extremely fond of honeydew and
attend such honeydew-excreting insects as plantlice (aphids), scale insects,
mealybugs, etc. They are most likely to enter buildings when their honeydew
supply is reduced such as during rainy weather or with leaf fall in the
autumn. When workers are alarmed, they run around in an erratic manner with
their gasters/abdomens raised up.
Biology: Colonies may be composed of several hundred to 100,000
ants. There are usually many queens in a colony. Developmental time (egg to
adult) is 34-83 days, varying with temperature during summer months, and up
to 6-7 months during the winter. Colonies typically produce 4-5 generations
a year. Although they probably mate both inside and outside the nest, the
first swarmers appear from May to mid-July. The workers and queens live for
several years. Individuals from different colonies are not hostile to one
another and workers normally move along trails.
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Cornfield Ants
This abundant ant is an important pest in homes in the northern United
States and especially in the Pacific Northwest. As it name indicates, it is
a common ant in cornfields. In homes it prefers sweet substances; while
outside it also feeds on dead and live insects, plant sap, and honeydew.
Common nesting sites include in rotting logs and stumps, under stones, and
in exposed soil. It often builds small craters in lawns. This ant is the
most common nuisance ant pest of picnics in its range.
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If you are experiencing problems with Ants
contact us for treatment or more information.
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