Pest Library

Characteristics

Acrobat ants are known for their shiny appearance and may even have a patent leather look to it. Their final segment has a heart shape look when seen from above. They are named acrobat ant because of their ability to raise their abdomen over their thorax and head as if they are doing some acrobatics.

Their color is usually black or light brown. Some are multicolored, but the head or the abdomen is darker than their body. They are 1/6 to 1/8 inch long with most workers having the same size. They have a petiole, which is a 2-segmented section that is attached to the abdomen.

Habitat

Acrobat ants can nest in different indoor and outdoor locations. They can find an abandoned carpenter ant galleries or termite nests a perfect location. They can also create homes in logs, stumps, hollow tree cavities when they are outdoors. When they are indoors, they can be found in wall voids, baseboards, door and window framing, and foam insulation. Their preferred wood is moist and can sometimes be seen on decayed wood.

Behavior

Since acrobat ants are attracted to sweets and proteins, they are often seen invading homes in search for these foods. They may enter a home or building by crawling on electrical, phone lines, or they can gain access from shrubs or trees that are too close or touching the property.

When these ants are disturbed, they will pull their abdomen up, then emit a bad odor and bite their attacker. While the bite is not considered dangerous, it may still cause a burning sensation that may become itchy.

Food

They eat a variety of sweets and high-protein foods. They can feed on honeydew produced by aphids, and feed on dead insects.

Life Cycle

It takes 38 to 45 days for an egg to become an adult acrobat ant. Their colony is made by several queens that can reproduce eggs, even when the main queen is already gone. The queen can create sterile female worker ants that do not swarm, but will just create broods to develop the colony. These ants do not swarm like other ants. However, they continue to create sub-colonies or other main colonies by “budding” where one of the queens or some of them will bring their workers and their eggs to a new nesting site.

Other Information and Tips

Acrobat ants are known pests because they can really be persistent. They have a feces-like odor, they bite, and may even nest indoors. Since they have multiple queens, their colonies can grow faster than other ant colonies. To treat an infestation, it is important to locate their nesting site by providing baits. In some cases where baits are not effective, the use of insecticides and dust can also be helpful. However, without the solution of killing the queens, to colony may just produce more workers. To get rid of an acrobat ant infestation, it will be more effective to consult a pest control professional to properly and effectively eliminate these pests.

Photo by April Nobile – www.AntWeb.org