Ants
Are you looking to end your ant problem now?
At University Termite & Pest Control, we ensure our employees are ready to solve your ant problems….the first time, every time. Our pet and family-friendly resolutions for ant control take into account your need for us to resolve your problem, without interrupting your life. We make sure that we focus on the real problem…those bothersome pests, all the while not being one.
Please speak to one of our representatives now. While you book your initial appointment, he or she will answer all your questions about what we do, the reasons we do it and why you can have complete confidence when University takes care of your family while addressing your pest issues.
Appointments are available within 24-48 hours of your conversation. If you are really ready to be pest free….especially of your ant problems, Call University:
Tucson: 520-886-4146
ANTS
Ants are the #1 nuisance pest in the United States. Ant control is what most people call University about. The difference between successful ant control and a real disaster is just a few slight missteps. Identification is the single most important component to ant control.
We know the right way to take care of ant problems in the desert southwest. You can rest easy when you call University.
There are more than 700 ant species found in the U.S, but only approximately 25 species infest our homes.
Ants are social insects (they live together in “bug communities”) and typically in underground colonies. Made up of workers and a queen, ants will eat practically any kind of food, but are especially attracted to sweets.
How do you tell an ant from a termite or other insect? Ants are identifiable due to their three distinct body regions: head, thorax and abdomen, as well as antennae. Ants will always have a narrow waist, elbowed antennae and if they have wings, they will be two pair, with different sized pairs.
Despite being related, and sharing similar features, ants vary in overall appearance. There are many common names for ants: Sugar Ants, Mounding Ants, Fire Ants, etc…they are very different, and these differences are very important.
Acrobat Ants
Acrobat Ants get their name from the peculiar habit of holding their abdomens over their heads while they run, when disturbed. Small ants, they are easily identified by the shape of their abdomen. Each black ant is shaped like a tiny “Ace of Spades”. They have a preference for cracks and small voids in furniture and wood construction features. Though this species have a sting, they rarely use it and are too small to penetrate the skin of most people.
Argentine Ants
Argentine Ant
The Argentine ant is native to Brazil and Argentina, but is thriving here in Arizona. This species loves moist places to live. Typical nesting spots include water pipes, potted plants and next to paved walkways. This ant feeds on sweets, and will often actually act as “farmer” to aphids so that they can harvest their honeydew. They will come inside your home if outdoor food supplies have been depleted.
Introduced to Arizona from California, these ants will invade in tremendous numbers, making the spaces they inhabit impossible to be comfortable in. Argentine ants do not like the heat of the day. When temperatures climb over 85-90 degrees Fahrenheit, they will go deep into the soil to avoid the elevated temperatures. If you see ants in the morning, but they seem to disappear in the middle of the day, you are likely dealing with the Argentine Ant.
Elimination of this pest often requires a comprehensive control program.
Carpenter Ants
Carpenter Ant
Carpenter Ants are found throughout the United States. They are infamous for invading and damaging homes with their wood destroying habits. In Southern Arizona, they are found in mountainous and foothill regions where they establish in any available space.
These ants to not actually consume wood, like their termite cousins, but if they find rotting or damaged wood, they will excavate it to create chambers. If left alone, they will develop “satellite” colonies, each one capable of creating havoc on your home.
Control of these ants requires that each individual colony is located and eliminated. This can be especially challenging, due to the fact that they can travel long distances, and these satellite colonies can be 100 feet or more apart, and can be found in trees, tree stumps, dense shrubs and just about any other suitable void surrounding your home.
Fire Ants
Fire Ant
Fire ants are some of the most well known ants. They have earned their name and reputation because of the painful bites and stings they inflict on their victims. The Red Imported Fire Ant (RIFA) is especially aggressive and is found throughout the Southern States, but not so much in Arizona.
One confirmed sighting of RIFA at a location in southern Arizona, triggered a massive response at the direction of the Department of Agriculture. Back in the late 1990’s this effort to prevent them from spreading took nearly a year to complete with a price tag of over $100,000.
Arizona does have another Fire Ant which is commonly encountered, the Southern Fire Ant. This ant is not nearly as fearsome as RIFA, but sensitive persons can still have reactions to their venom.
Odorous Ants
Odorous Ant
The Odorous House Ant, is named for the ‘rotten-coconut’ like odor emitted you can smell whey they are crushed. They are commonly ant found throughout the United States. These small ants forage day and night, and build shallow nests in a all sorts of places around your home.
Unlike the Argentine Ant, the Odorous House Ant is not sensitive to the heat. They will continue to forage and trail no matter the outdoor temperature. If you see small ants in the middle of the day outside, they are probably the Odorous House Ant.
Indoors, the Odorous House Ant will build their nests inside of wall voids, especially around hot water pipes and heaters. These ants prefer to be outside and only invade the interior of homes when food on the exterior is scarce.
Pharaoh Ants
Pharaoh Ants, get their name as it is believed that they were one of the original plagues set upon Pharaoh by Moses.
These small and light colored ants can become big problems in hospitals and care homes. They will get in to IV bottles and contaminate dressed wounds. Pharaoh Ants are difficult to control, because they are very sensitive to their environment.
Misapplication of ant control products, or even harsh cleaning products will trigger a survival reaction from the colony. These ants will divide up the colony, and spread out creating multiple new colonies. They will re-emerge shortly thereafter, in even larger numbers than before. This is why treatment programs may take weeks to execute and require meticulous planning.
Harvester Ants
Harvester Ants are some of the largest ants we have in Arizona. It is these ants that children would often pit against each other in schoolyard amusement.
They build their nests in the ground and generally have one of two different appearances, red or black. You can observe these ants outside, spreading out to forage for seeds, dead insects and tender plant parts, which they utilize as food.
People get frustrated trying to control these ants by themselves because they will place “ant powder” around the holes of these ants, only to have them pop up again a few feet away. Fortunately, University has the tools to ensure that this is not the case when we are on the job.
Rover Ants
Rover Ants are one of the newest and most challenging ants to control. This very small ant, does not “trail” like many other species. They seem to wander around aimlessly and will readily avoid most traditional treatments and treatment strategies.
They will appear both inside and outside, following underground pipes into structures and then will be seen in bathrooms, kitchen islands, laundry rooms or any other place they can emerge from beneath the soil.
These ants require a careful and well planned approach to control and oftentimes, one product (bait, liquid sprays, dusts) are not enough to control their activity. Several different products must be combined, along with the consideration that each must work in concert with the other.
Do you need help controlling an ant problem? Don’t settle for an exterminator! Call the Pest Management Professionals at University Termite & Pest Control. They have the skill and knowledge to identify pests and make a correct diagnosis the first time, every time.
University Termite & Pest Control, The Ones Who Know….
