Ants a Common Winter Pest

Ants, a common winter pest.  Here in the Treasure Valley the snow has been melting away and we have already answered a handful of calls for ants.   We have mentioned before, pests do not just “go away” and/ or die when winter hits.  Ants will find a safe place to try to escape from the cold just like rodents and spiders do. Depending on the type of ant, their safe place may be rooming with you, underneath the house, in the kitchen and even up in the attic.
It’s not definitely not unheard of to spot ants in the kitchen during the middle of winter with frozen grounds outside.  However, once the temperature start to rise, snow is melting, that means the ground is warming up and ants will be on the move.
The most common types of ants that we deal with in our area are Carpenter Ants, Odorous House Ants (also known as Sugar Ants) and Pavement Ants.
Carpenter ants can be found residing both outdoors and indoors. Usually in moist/damp decaying or hollow wood. Carpenter ants cut galleries into the wood grain to make their nests and to provide passageways for movement from section to section of the nest. When they do this activity you will commonly see bits of wood shavings mixed with parts of dead ants.
Odorous house or sometimes referred to as “sugar ants” are small, measuring 2.4 to 3.3 mm in length. They have dark brown or black bodies with one node on their petiole, which is hidden by their abdomens. The thoraxes of odorous house ants are unevenly shaped when viewed from the side. The most noticeable characteristic of these tiny ants is the strong, rotten coconut-like smell they give off when crushed.
Pavement Ants, which usually make their homes in pavements, are small about 2.5 to 3mm long. They are black-brown ants, with lighter legs and antennae. They can be identified by two spines on the back, two nodes on the petiole, with parallel lines on head and thorax. The colonies can be moderately large.
If you find ants or other pests inside your home or office, give Alpha a call 208-475-4440