If you are looking at an army of ants marching their way through your kitchen or living room, you are probably not too concerned about what type of ants they are. However, the breed of the ants that you are looking at can make a huge difference in how you should handle them. There is also a big difference in the type of damage that different types of ants can create once they breach your home. You need to understand the difference between regular ants and carpenter ants so that you can understand how quickly you need to act and what you need to do.
Why are most homeowners confused between regular ants and carpenter ants? This is because both ants are a bit similar due to their color, and both are quite common. Before you try to solve your ant problem at home, make sure to know if you have either a carpenter ant or a more tamed regular ant. Still, having both of these ant species can bring nuisance and damage to homes.
Regular Ants Vs Carpenter Ants
Carpenter ants are generally much larger than the regular ant. A human being will easily be able to see the different sections of the body on a carpenter ant, while a person might have trouble discerning this on a regular ant. The shape of the body is also slightly different. Carpenter ants have a head that is shaped like a heart, while regular ants have a more circular head. The thorax of the carpenter ant is also more symmetrical than a regular breed.
Regular Ants
Regular ants/black ants are approximately .2 inches in length. The queen is two times the length of its workers at just .4 inches in length. These ants do not nest in houses because they are content staying in soil outside, at the base of walls, and under paving slabs. Their colony can grow to have 4,000 to 7,000 individuals with just a single queen, but they can also create large colonies that can have 15,000 individuals.
It is easy to detect their nests because they create earthen mounds. Since they do not create nests inside homes, these black ants will come into your home from their nest outside to search for food. The problem is that they infest your food sources, and they do not leave until the food is gone (sometimes well after). They leave because their natural habitat is not indoors, nor do they have any inclination to stay except for the food source. As annoying as this may, the carpenter ant is a worse problem because that breed can easily live indoors
Carpenter Ants
Most carpenter ants vary in size and color depending on the species. There are 10 known species of carpenter ants. The most notable of these carpenter ants are the ones with the black hue. These ants are large with 1/4 to 1/2 inch in size. However, there are also some carpenter ants that are reddish-orange. Unlike regular ants, they can forage indoors, especially if they find a good source of moist wood, combined with the availability of food and water. These ants have very sharp mandibles that can be used to bite when they are threatened.
Carpenter ants take their name partially from the fact that they live in wood – the wood of your home, that is. They can eat away at the structure of your home, causing potentially expensive damage to its infrastructure that is not easily replaced. Compared to termites, these ants will create their galleries by excavating. Their galleries will have smooth, sandpapered appearance compared to the muddy structures of termites. Common signs that your home is infested with carpenter ants is if you find shredded fragments of wood, similar to sawdust or wood splinters, on the floor where their galleries might be taking place. They will also leave dead ants or insects outside their galleries.
Characteristics of Regular Ants and Carpenter Ants
These two species may closely resemble each other in color and even in size. For instance, the Allegheny mound ant is a relatively large black ant. It comes from the Formica species that is reddish-orange and black. Some of those who see the formica may mistake it for a carpenter ant because of the size and color. However, a close look at the two species will allow you to see that a carpenter ant has an even rounded thorax while the formica has an uneven ridged thorax.
Formica Ant
- • Has an even thorax
- • The thorax has an indention
- • Goes indoors to search for food, but not settle indoors
- • Their nests are large, domed shaped mounds
- • Prefer insects for food
Carpenter Ant
- • Its thorax is evenly rounded
- • Create homes in moist wood, but can also create homes in drywood
- • Creates multiple nest sites
- • Create satellite colonies indoors
- • Known to be destructive as they can hollow the wood they are infesting
Regular Ant Control
Getting rid of regular ant nests are much easier than carpenter ants because you may find the mound and make further steps in getting rid of it. Effective ways to get rid of the nest is to sprinkle ant killing granules around the mound. You can also use bait or even pour hot water into the mound.
Carpenter Ant Control
The most effective way to control carpenter ants is to find the nesting site. You may not be able to get rid of these ants if you cannot find the sites. If you are lucky and you find the nesting site, you can use boric acid or insecticides to treat the wood. However, to get rid of them effectively and its satellite colonies, better to approach a pest control professional to effectively get rid of these nests and save your wood.
If you are having trouble identifying the type of ants in your home or getting rid of them, the ant control experts at Preventive Pest Control are here to help. We are experts at getting the right kind of treatment in place for the right kind of pest. All that we need to get started is that phone call or email from you, so do not hesitate to call us to help you get your home back under control quickly!
Updated on Oct. 18, 2016