Carpenter Ant
Ants are tiny insects which can sting your foot off when you walk barefoot in your garden or even inside your house. As there are many types of ants that are found in homes and buildings, it might not be that easy to identify considering their size, which ranges from 3/8 of an inch to 1 inch, and their color, which are mainly black and red. In fact, even carpenter ants can hardly be recognized from its other relative ants.
First, let us try to distinguish carpenter ants from other ants. Carpenter ants have unique features that differentiate them from others such as their single node and a rounded upper surface thorax. Although some ants may look almost the same as carpenter ants, the thorax is most likely to be noticeable. Since they are classified as insects, they are believed to be harmful to woods just as some termites do. But these types of ants don’t eat wood though they reside and nests on it.
Just like the typical ants, they are classified into three social distinctions – the queens, the males and the workers. The queen usually spends most of the time in their nest for safety while those which you can see often are the workers. The male ants are generally those with huge heads, enormous eyes, and large thoraces, with wings, which after mating will die the soonest. And did you ever wonder where their female counterparts are? Well, they are the workers.
Talking about wings, carpenter ants have different wing composition than that of a termite. The termite’s has equal length on front and back wings while the carpenter ant’s has shorter or smaller back wings than those pair in front. But the very obvious dissimilarity is that termite avoids light thus making it less visible outside their colony while winged carpenter ants can be seen almost constantly away from their colony. Furthermore, winged termites have light colors while flying carpenter ants possess darker ones. Also, the former has straight antennae while the latter has bent antennae.
And did I mention about their diet? I mentioned about these ants not eating woods earlier. Well, they just favorably live in it because they feed on sweets. Carpenter ants which are found inside buildings feed on meats, sugar, honey, and the like. But those who are living outdoors nourished on dead insects which produces sweet juices such as aphids and other fruit-tree-sucking creatures.
Now, as they live in woods, it is apparent that they can be harmful to the wooden structures in homes and buildings. This is why we have distinguished carpenter ants from any other ants and termites for this is very significant in controlling pests – to know who you are dealing with. Carpenter ants reside on damp woods and rotting trees which are explicitly exposed to moisture, condensation or poor ventilation. Now these deteriorating woods are more prone to extreme damage due to carpenter ants’ tunnel-making and excavation activities. And this could worsen as colonies stay long within the area as they do diggings while they are still alive.
Exterminating carpenter ants would mean extraneous effort in finding their nests. Though they might be easier to find during summers, maybe it would take professionals to totally eliminate the dilemma caused by these insects. They might be harmless at an instant but could cause severe damage in the long run.
First, let us try to distinguish carpenter ants from other ants. Carpenter ants have unique features that differentiate them from others such as their single node and a rounded upper surface thorax. Although some ants may look almost the same as carpenter ants, the thorax is most likely to be noticeable. Since they are classified as insects, they are believed to be harmful to woods just as some termites do. But these types of ants don’t eat wood though they reside and nests on it.
Just like the typical ants, they are classified into three social distinctions – the queens, the males and the workers. The queen usually spends most of the time in their nest for safety while those which you can see often are the workers. The male ants are generally those with huge heads, enormous eyes, and large thoraces, with wings, which after mating will die the soonest. And did you ever wonder where their female counterparts are? Well, they are the workers.
Talking about wings, carpenter ants have different wing composition than that of a termite. The termite’s has equal length on front and back wings while the carpenter ant’s has shorter or smaller back wings than those pair in front. But the very obvious dissimilarity is that termite avoids light thus making it less visible outside their colony while winged carpenter ants can be seen almost constantly away from their colony. Furthermore, winged termites have light colors while flying carpenter ants possess darker ones. Also, the former has straight antennae while the latter has bent antennae.
And did I mention about their diet? I mentioned about these ants not eating woods earlier. Well, they just favorably live in it because they feed on sweets. Carpenter ants which are found inside buildings feed on meats, sugar, honey, and the like. But those who are living outdoors nourished on dead insects which produces sweet juices such as aphids and other fruit-tree-sucking creatures.
Now, as they live in woods, it is apparent that they can be harmful to the wooden structures in homes and buildings. This is why we have distinguished carpenter ants from any other ants and termites for this is very significant in controlling pests – to know who you are dealing with. Carpenter ants reside on damp woods and rotting trees which are explicitly exposed to moisture, condensation or poor ventilation. Now these deteriorating woods are more prone to extreme damage due to carpenter ants’ tunnel-making and excavation activities. And this could worsen as colonies stay long within the area as they do diggings while they are still alive.
Exterminating carpenter ants would mean extraneous effort in finding their nests. Though they might be easier to find during summers, maybe it would take professionals to totally eliminate the dilemma caused by these insects. They might be harmless at an instant but could cause severe damage in the long run.
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