The Ants Come Marching

Published on May 18, 2009

The cold weather of winter has done some of our work for us by eliminating ant colonies that were exposed. However, warming trends and increasing hours of daylight will begin to make ants, and other pest species emerge.

Carpenter ants, as they become active, often expel winged males as early as February. These males exist only to breed. Deemed to be unnecessary, they are pushed out of the parent and satellite colonies. In appearance, they are smaller than the big females seen later in the spring, are black in color and have small heads. (This usually elicits comments about the intelligence of males in general.)

Referred to as false swarms, the rejected male ants will cometimes be seen resting on warm surfaces outdoors but are nothing to be alarmed by since they cannot survive outside of the colony.  If you see them inside it means that the ants have over-wintered in the structure and you should call Eden to locate the colonies… the sooner they are found the better.

Pavement ants are also known to emerge as early as February.  These ants live in the soil but often will nest under slab foundations, or occasionally in crawl spaces. They are smaller than the carpenter ant males and will be much more active.  Inside they fly to lights and windows. They are often seen exiting from under base-boards and there is often an accumulation of fine sand or dirt at the emergence site. In this case the culprits are females that are looking to set up new colonies. They will not do well outside at this time of year, and their ability to find suitable nesting sites inside are limited to nonexistent, but they are a nuisance.

Towards the end of March we may begin to see activity from the Odorous House Ant (a.k.a. Sugar Ant). These small, dark ants can be a truly bothersome problem and if noted should be reported quickly to have the source identified and eliminated.

There are some things that can be done to limit ant activity around structures.

•     Remove storm debris and leaf litter from around structures.  
•     Pick up boards or other objects that are lying on the ground. Ants love to  nest under solid objects resting on the soil.  
•     As need for fire wood lessens, store only small amounts close to  structures.  
•     Trim back grass along walkways. Ants love to trail along the edge of  walkways and overhanging grass can allow them to approach structures unseen.