The Source of Pavement Ants

Pavement ants are one of the most common ant species in home infestations. They are known for building their colonies under slabs of concrete or rocks, which makes them much more resilient. But where do these ants come from and how can you stop them from infesting your home?

Where do pavement ants come from?

Pavement ant colonies are started by swarmers. Swarmers are winged ants and they are part of the reproductive caste. Once a colony reaches maturity, the queen will start spawning members of this caste, who will fly out in order to start their own nests. This is how a pavement ant colony begins.

Are pavement ant infestations dangerous?

Pavement ants are not very dangerous. They do not pose a health threat and they do not cause any damage to the infested property. However, they can grow in numbers considerably and you will have them all over your home once they infest the building. While this does not exactly qualify them as pests, they can be quite bothersome.

What can be done about pavement ant infestations?

Since pavement ants build their colonies under hard surfaces, direct application insecticides are not really effective. These insecticides are designed to seep into the colony and kill off every member of the colony. However, when these insecticides cannot be used, an effective option still remains – the ant bait.

Ant baits will draw the ants out of the well-protected colony with poison-laced food. The ants will take this food back to the colony and share it around. Before long, the ants start to die off en-masse, and the poison may eventually reach the queen, killing it, and destroying the entire colony.

More dangerous ant species

While pavement ants are mostly harmless, there are a few ant species which you really have to keep an eye out for. For one, you have carpenter ants, which destroy the wood of the home. You then have to take fire ants into consideration, which have a painful venom that they can sting you with. Finally, there are the pharaoh ants. Pharaoh ants are tiny and yellow, and they are capable of spreading diseases on the surfaces that they touch. If you notice any of these ants in the home, it’s important to act fast and have them removed. For more information about pavement ants or if you need pest control services, contact us today.