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Black
ants
Meat
Ants Argentine
Ants Coastal
Brown Ants
Small
Black Ant Bull
Ants Carpenter Ants One by one the ants go marching…. That’s right ants, they
march straight into your kitchen and make themselves right at home in your
house! There are about 3000 species of ants. Ants are social insects that
live in a permanent nest which can be found in soil, wood and rocks. You can
often observe them around foundations, walls, roof voids, kitchens, lawns,
gardens and also in the wood of decaying trees and rockeries. The queen regulates the colony. Once it has mated with a
male (after which the male usually dies) the queen begins egg laying. The
eggs that are fertilized become females and those that are not fertilized
become males. Their eggs are mostly small. Once the larva hatch they are fed
by the adults. After several months of sufficient feeding and several malts
the larva pupates. A few hours or even a day may be required for the process
of cutide-hardening and darkening. It takes six weeks for the ant to develop
from the egg stage to adulthood, depending on the species. At certain times
of the year large numbers of winged male and reproductive females are
produces. They usually swarm in a colonizing fight. During which they mate
and if successful the female will drop her wings and find am appropriate
nesting site in which to start a new colony. The other method of colonising
is called budding off. This is mainly used by the argentine ants and pharaoh
ants. What this involves is the ants mate in the nest and develops a large
numbers of females to reproduce. Then with some of the females already
fertilized they leave the nest along with a number of workers, to form a new
colony. They more or less live in a permanent nest but in extreme
conditions a change of nest is not uncommon. Worker ants forage for food from
the nest. Many do this by travelling in fairly well defined trails, once a
food source has been established. To establish a trail, a trail they may use
landmarks, orientation or lying down of a scented trail. Ants are considered
pest in and around buildings. The small mounds resulting from their
excavations may be considered unsightly. Sometimes there excavations may
cause cracks in their path. Ants can consume and damage some plants and seedlings.
The trails of the ants themselves and swarming may not only be considered
unsightly but also disturbing to some people. Ants are not only a threat because they can bite or sting
humans but they can also pose a health risk. Ants have been known to carry on
their bodies disease organisms that can cause a variety of bacteria’s
including salmonella. Ants are often found in kitchens, garbage cans, dog,
excrement and other places that can carry disease organisms. Stewarts Pest Control can treat black
ants for you. The operator that attends your property always tries to locate
the nest and spray the nest, but if the nest is on a neighbouring property
you may find you have a reoccurring ant problem. This is why Stewarts offer a
unique warranty with all ant treatments; call us now to find out about
it. Remember the quicker you get the problem treated the easier it is to
reduce the population and the less time they have to infest your house.
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