Carpenter ants’ name reflects their behaviour or nesting habits. They literally ‘carpenter’ wood to create perfect tunnels. These industrious insects can be found across Australia, making homes of all shapes and sizes.
What Is Carpenter Ants?
Carpenter ants are between a half-inch and 5/8th of an inch in length. Their colour ranges from black to dark brown or even brownish orange. An interesting fact about this species is their polymorphism. It means that there are worker ants of various sizes within one colony. You can distinguish them from other ant species by their oval shape and segmented body. They have two antennae and six legs.
Carpenter ants are crafty creatures who build elaborate colonies with multiple habitats. The main colony is always outdoors, providing a safe home for the queen and her offspring while workers construct satellite nests nearby – or sometimes inside your house. Though they may take years to mature, these creative ant kingdoms can be found in rural areas with tree stumps, forgotten fence posts, and urban dwellings where old firewood piles could conceal their secret kingdom.
Winged males and females take a flight to mate. The male dies after mating, and the queen sheds her wings. The queen starts searching for a suitable nesting site.
The queen bee chooses only hollow trees or logs stumps to build her nest. She lays up to 20 eggs that mature in two months. Then they transform into hardworking adult worker bees.
Though small in size, the initial workers of a colony are highly resilient due to their access to the queen’s store of nutrients. As time progresses and foraging increases, they grow larger.
Worker ants quickly mature and take on essential roles in the colony. Forage for food, expand their home, nurture larvae — these adult insects are hard workers. Their diet includes dead bugs, tiny critters and sweet honeydew produced by scale insects or aphids.
Eating Habits
These little workers will travel up to 300 feet from their nests for food and enjoy a varied diet, including plants, insects, and honeydew. Unfortunately, they also prefer unhealthy foods like meats, sweets, and grease. They start foraging during the day until dawn approaches.
Signs of Carpenter Ant Infestation
Homeowners should look for large, black-coloured ants without wings, as they can indicate a carpenter ant infestation. While finding them indoors doesn’t necessarily mean their nests are inside your home. These workers likely enter to search for food and water sources such as sugary foods or fatty meats.
Carpenter Ant Extermination Expert
At Tom’s Pest Control Sydney, we provide reliable and effective carpenter ant extermination services. Our experienced exterminators use their expertise to identify the species of ants on your property. Then, we will locate entry points before creating a comprehensive control and prevention plan tailored to fit your unique situation. Trust us by getting rid of those pesky pests in no time.
We offer specialist advice based on the level of pest infestation and the factors that attract pests to your property. Our experienced technicians are here to ensure you have full peace of mind – be it a one-off treatment or regular maintenance plan.
Call Us Today
Contact us for effective Ant pest control solutions. Our highly experienced technicians can identify the source, apply treatments, and take preventive measures to protect against further damage. Let’s work together to ensure your home and office remain safe from carpenter ant infestation.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which carpenter ants have wings?
The reproductive king and queen ants possess wings. They have two pairs of membranous wings, which they use for mating. While the king dies within a few hours after mating, the female ant will shed their newly acquired wings shortly after mating before seeking an appropriate nesting site. The queen prefers woody structures like trees to lay eggs and establish a new nest.
Why are carpenter ants in the house?
If you’re seeing ants around your property, it’s because they’re attracted to food and looking for a good place to nest. Carpenter ants tend to seek shelter close to water resources and locations with high humidity, like kitchens and bathrooms.
Where do carpenter ants live?
Carpenter ants can be found in indoor and outdoor locations with damp or rotted wood, especially in forested areas. They create pathways, called galleries, into the wood to move between different parts of their nests.
