Carpenter Ants: Unwanted House Guests

With the cost of living rising dramatically, the last thing home owners want or need is another surprise expense, especially one coming at the hands of a truly disgusting pest like the carpenter ant. But carpenter ants have a way of showing up uninvited, usually when you least want them to. Carpenter ants are found just about everywhere around the world. Yet they thrive in areas that have high moisture levels. Their ideal home is one that contains dead or rotting wood. Likely spots are under windows as well as poorly maintained decks and porches. All of these areas can suffer from prolonged periods of water contact on wood. Most Florida homes are potential targets, especially those that are of stick-frame construction.

Unlike termites, carpenter ants do not actually eat the wood in which they live. They, instead, cause damage to it by burrowing to build their nests. Imagine tens of thousands of ants all creating tiny holes in wood. Individually, they do little damage. However, as an entire colony, they can leave a costly mess. They also present a real risk of bodily harm and liability to the homeowners. For example, if carpenter ants significantly damage a structural support, which holds up a deck, it may collapse when weight is applied to it, bringing a person down with a dangerous crash.

Collateral Damage

By itself, the damage these ants cause to wood is reason for alarm. But their propensity to infest surrounding areas is also a reason to nip this problem in the bud. Carpenter ants need to search for food and water in order to sustain the colony, nourishment they can't find in their wood homes. Thus they will send out scout ants to survey the area. Worker ants then follow, foraging and securing necessary supplies. Because of their wide-ranging mobility, an isolated infestation can quickly spread and turn into a systemic one.

Carpenter Ants can also harm humans. One of the species found in Florida, called Camponotus atriceps, can bite home owners and their children by biting them. When carpenter ants bite, they release a toxic acid. When the acid is released onto a person's skin, it can cause pain. There is also the potential for an allergic reaction.

The Carpenter Ant Gang

To make matters even worse, these ants do not travel alone. Often, they are paired with a symbiont. A symbiont is an organism that lives in a harmonic, co-dependent relationship with another organism. For carpenter ants, the symbiont is a bacterium called Blochmannia. Some ants may also be carrying Wolbachia, a second bacterium. Because these "friends" are ever-present, they can often end up contaminating your food and water.

When a carpenter-ant infestation is uncovered, there is also a chance that cockroaches will be present. Cockroaches are known disease carriers. These are alarming threats for homeowners because such an infestation can spread quickly and become difficult to eradicate. Fortunately, this situation can be resolved by seeking professional assistance from a pest control company as soon as a sign of infestation is noticed. As experts, they are able to determine the extension of the Carpenter Ant colony and the best way to eradicate it.