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Ants In and Around the Home
Ants rank number one in inquiries at our office over all other household/structural pests.
Some ants are so small and similar in appearance when viewed by the naked eye, that it takes t
rained specialists to tell the difference between species.
Identification
There are several kinds of ants that may occur in and around the home ranging in size from about 1/32 to 3/4 inch long and colored yellowish, light brown, reddish-brown, brownish-black or jet black. Ants, as all insects, have three body parts, head, thorax, and abdomen. Most are wingless, but the homeowner sometimes may confuse swarming, winged ants with swarming, winged termites, causing alarm. Ants can be easily distinguished from termites by several characteristics:
1. Ant bodies appear constricted or pinched in at the waist (shaped like a figure 8), while termites do not have the waist constriction.
2. Ants have elbowed antennae, while termites have straight, bead-like antennae.
3. The forewings of ants are much larger than the hindwings. Termites' wings are equal in size and shape.
4.Ant wings are transparent or brownish, while termite wings are milky-white or grayish and longer than the body.
5. Ant wings are firmly attached, while termite wings are easily removed or shed (fall off).
Differences between a winged termite and a winged ant.
Life Cycle and Habits
Ants are social insects that live in colonies or nests usually located in the soil near the house foundation, under concrete slabs, in crawlspaces, in structural wood, in the yard or garden, in trees and in other protected places. Ants have three castes, namely queens, males and workers. Queens and males are the reproductives. Workers are sterile wingless females. New ant colonies are started by a single fertilized queen that lays eggs and tends her brood (larvae and pupae) that develop into worker ants. Tending of the brood is then taken over by the worker, which may shift the brood from place to place as moisture and temperature fluctuate in the nest. When workers forage for food for the queen and her young, they often may enter houses and become a nuisance by their presence and contaminate food.
Ants in General
Argentine Ants
Acrobat Ants
Carpenter Ant
Crazy Ants
Fire Ants
Odorous House Ants
Pavement Ants
Pharaoh Ant
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Give us a call and we would be happy to provide a price for our
pest control services. For termites and wildlife exclusion, we can provide a rough
estimate
over the phone, then perform a free inspection with an exact quote.
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