APPEARANCE:

 

BLACK CARPENTER ANT

Carpenter ants are large, from 1/4 o 3/8 inches long and are dark brown to black, but some may have red or yellow coloration. The usual carpenter ant is large and black, but the Florida carpenter ant, is smaller and ranges in colors from yellow, red, brown to black. Click here for a picture of carpenter ants and damage DIET Florida carpenter ants eat a variety of plant and animal foods, as well as sweets. They also feed on other insects. HABITS They are nocturnal. Carpenter ants usually nest outside in moist wood or partially decayed wood. They prefer to hollow out their nests in softened wood. Their nests are called "galleries." These galleries are clean and have a sandpaper appearance. In comparison, termite galleries are rough looking. Wood that has been damaged by carpenter ants contain no mud-like material, as is the case with termites. Florida carpenter ants' nests are commonly found in such places as moist, hollow spaces like the wall void behind dishwashers. Nests are usually found in areas where water leakage could occur, such as around bathtubs, sinks, roof leaks, poorly flashed chimneys, or poorly sealed windows or door frames. Outdoor nest are found in places like tree stumps, hollow logs, fence posts or dead portions of standing trees. However, theses persistent creatures can build nests in cracks and crevices of sound wood. Carpenter ants may establish nests in a number of different locations. It is important to understand than you can have both inside and outside nests. Carpenter ants construct two different kinds of nests: parent colonies which, when mature, contain an egg-laying queen, a brood, 2,000 or more worker ants, and satellite colonies, which may have large numbers of worker ants, but no queen, eggs or larvae. For example, the carpenter ants found in your home may have originated from parent nests outdoors, perhaps in a tree stump, timber or woodpile, or from one or more satellite nests hidden behind a wall in the kitchen or bathroom, or perhaps from wood dampened by a roof leak in the attic. Although large carpenter ant colonies can cause structural damage, the damage is not normally as serious as termite damage. HOW TO DETECT GALLERIES Many times you can see what looks like sawdust near carpenter ant galleries. This sawdust or frass, is shredded fragments of wood that has been ejected from the galleries. This is a good indication that a nest is nearby. But sometimes this evidence is undetectable, but using a screwdriver to probe the wood near a suspicious are may reveal the excavated galleries. Also, you use the blunt end of the screwdriver to tap along baseboards and other wood surfaces, listening for the hollow sound of damaged wood. If a nest is nearby, often the carpenter ants will respond by making a rustling sound within the nest, similar to the sound of crinkling cellophane. FORAGING CARPENTER ANTS FROM THE OUTSIDE Often, the carpenter ants you see inside your home are simply foraging for food, and you may not see large numbers of them. Foraging ants can travel 100 yards from nest to food and can be found wandering throughout your house. However, indoor nest are also found in hollow doors, window sills, behind baseboards, or other natural hollow areas. Carpenter ant damage usually indicates water damage and wood decay.