Ants
Ants are pests that are virtually unavoidable. Where there is a food source, there will be ants. In Nevada, there are three different types of ants to worry about. Carpenter ants, pavement or sugar ants, and little black ants are the most common ants to infest properties. Many homes will see these pests at least once during the year, but the professionals at Morgan Pest Control can help stop them from being a reoccurring problem.
Carpenter Ants: Carpenter ants are the largest ants likely to be found in a home. They are usually about a ¼ inch to a ½ inch long, but some may be as long as one inch. They are black or reddish brown and can be found all over the world. Carpenter ants get their name from the areas they prefer to dwell in, which is wood. Specifically, they love to make their homes in dead, damp wood. This makes firewood stacks, dead trees, and wooden planks used for landscaping some of the best places to find carpenter ants.
These insects become a problem when they choose to make their home in the wood of a building. They chew through the wood, creating tunnels to nest, which eventually weakens the wood and compromises the integrity of the building. Though carpenter ants tunnel through the wood in a way that makes it seem like they are eating it, like termites do, carpenter ants do not actually use wood as a food source. This means that where there are carpenter ants, there is usually a sawdust residue left behind as evidence of their tunnels and nests.
Pavement Ants/Sugar Ants – Pavement or sugar ants are the most recognizable, most prevalent species of ant. These are the little pests that swarm a drop of ice cream on the pavement in the summertime. They seem to come out of nowhere, moving in on anything sweet they can reach. Besides feasting on sweet treats, they will also eat other dead insects or, frankly, just about anything they can consume. They are very small, at about 1/8th of an inch long, and are usually black or brown. While they do not pose a serious risk to people or property, they can be very annoying to deal with and carry the slight risk of transferring E. Coli and Salmonella to food and food preparation surfaces.
Little Black Ants – These small and shiny ants can be a terrible nuisance when they get indoors. These ants are very small, at only about 1/16th inch long, but their large colonies make them very difficult to deal with. These are the small ants that are typically found in the kitchen, bathroom, and laundry room. They stay near moisture, but also search out small morsels to eat in the home. Since they tend to invade the indoors in large numbers, it is important to get professionals to the area to get rid of these little black ants and also to avoid infestations from happening again.
