About Carpenter Ants
Carpenter ants have got their name from the way they destroy the wood that makes up your house and furnishings. Although they don’t have an apetite for wood as termites do. They chew and excrete it to create paths for themselves and their hundreds of relatives. Carpenter ants can be identified by the appearance of random mounds of particles that resemble wood shavings.
Carpenter ants come in a plethora of sizes and colours, although they are typically huge (1/4-1/2 inch) and blackish in appearance. Swarms of winged carpenter ant reproductives will occasionally appear inside a residence. Carpenter ant swarms are most common in the spring and indicate that a colony is nesting inside the building.
The increased size and shape of their antennae, waist, and wings differentiate winged carpenter ants from termites.
Habits
Carpenter ants harm wood by hollowing it out for nesting, in addition to being obnoxious by their presence. They dig smooth, sandpapered-looking tunnels in wood. Termite-damaged wood does not contain a mud-like substance, as does carpenter ant-damaged wood.
Habitats
Shredded wood particles, resembling coarse sawdust, are discharged from the galleries via preexisting fractures or slits created by the ants. When such clumps are discovered (usually including dead ants and fragments of insects that the carpenter ants have devoured), it’s a good sign that a carpenter ant nest is nearby. However, excavated sawdust is frequently hidden behind a wall or in another secret location.
Threats
Aside from the presence of workers and/or swarmers, the emergence of tiny holes on the surface of wood is the sole outward evidence of a carpenter ant infestation. The ants use them to discharge trash, which includes sawdust-like shavings, insulation pieces, and insect body parts.
Prevention
The first step in eradicating a carpenter ant infestation is to locate the nest. It can be removed or chemically treated after it has been discovered. All moisture conditions that the ants determined to be favourable must be eliminated. Serious structural damage to homes and buildings can be averted if caught early. However, if these ants go unnoticed for a long time, they can cause significant damage to structures. When surviving individuals begin burrowing and feeding, DIY control approaches sometimes entail improper practices, which might allow the colony to return.
