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Oh Spring, how lovely are your flowers and all your new leaves… and ohhh your ANTS!!

April and May are notorious for the influx in ant appearances in homes throughout Western Washington and Oregon. The most common Northwest species include: odorous house ants, pavement ants, and carpenter ants. Odorous house ants are smelly and annoying, pavement ants are unsanitary and can sting, but carpenter ants have the ability to destroy one of your most valuable investments; your home!

Carpenter Ant Activity:

Male carpenter ants begin crawling about as early as February and females will emerge a little later in the spring. Their activity primarily consists of workers traveling between foraging sites and their nests or moving a satellite colony into a structure, like your home.

Colonies generally consist of a queen, a brood (larvae and pupae) winged ants, and workers. Older colonies usually have satellite colonies, in addition to the main colony, containing workers, older brood and often some winged males and females preparing for mating flights (swarming).

Habitat:

Main colonies are often found outside in damp wood (tree stumps, wood piles, etc.) where young brood can be raised in high humidity. Satellite colonies do not require high moisture and can thus be found in various locations, indoors or outdoors and in very dry locations like beneath insulation in attics or subfloors. The number of satellite colonies can vary from none to over 20, depending on climate and the length of time allowed to infest.

Though carpenter ants do not eat wood like termites, they do similarly burrow tunnels into wood, causing a comparable amount of damage.

Helpful Tips:

When looking to hiring a professional for Carpenter Ant treatment, ask yourself the following questions:

1.     How long have the ants been present and in what stages?

a.     Have they been present in your home for over a year?

b.     Have you seen them during the winter months?

c.      Have you seen winged versions prior to their mating flights (swarming)?

If you answered, “yes” to any of these questions, you can assume that you either have a satellite or main colony nesting in your home. This level of infestation will most likely require complete treatment.

If you answered, “no” to all of the questions but are still worried you have a carpenter ant issue, the colony maybe residing near your home. Fortunately, this is a simple fix and preventative treatment should suffice.

Other conditions to look out for around your home that may be conducive to carpenter ant (as well as other pests) harborage: Water leaks, drainage problems, trees and/or landscaping touching the exterior of your home, fences touching the home (especially wood fences), etc.