Signs of a Pavement Ant Infestation

 

Pavement ants, also known as house ants, are common house-infesting ant species found throughout Canada and the world. Unlike other pests, pavement ants tend to attack homes and other buildings throughout the year.

 

Signs You Have Pavement Ants

Seeing worker ants straying in your kitchen or on the pavement cracks is an early sign of invasion into your house. Pavement ants may overwhelm homes and courtyards as they look around for food sources following the scent from their nest. Other factors to look at to determine whether your house Is infested are;

• Live Ants: A large number of ants means a highly likely hood of the presence of a large colony in the surrounding. Finding a higher number of ants than normal in your house is also a sign of ant invasion.
• Ants Procession: Marching ants in your house to the food source means you already have a problem. As ant make their way to the food source, they leave behind a pheromone trail which can assist a homeowner to track down and find their colony.
• Ant Piles & Colony: If you notice any heap or colony around your home, that means your house is at threat of infestation. At the colony, ants pile large mounds of dirt on the surface. Do you notice ant colonies or piles in and around your home? If that's so, you’re your property is under siege. Ant piles consist of lumpsum mounds of dirt that are created as an ant colony.
• Food Overrun by Ants: Looking at leftover food is the easiest way to identify an infestation in your house.
• Ants' high presence in your house only means they are carrying food to their colony to save it for a rainy day.  Worker ants leave their nest to look for food. The earliest and easiest way to identify an infestation is by seeing an ant trail in your yard, which makes it easier to get rid of the colony before it takes up the home or the courtyard.

What Do Pavement Ants Look Like?

Pavement ants, like other insects, have their bodies segmented into three body parts, namely, the head, thorax, and legs. They are dark brown to blackish in color and are about 2.5 to 3mm in length. They have a darker head and thorax with parallel markings, whereas the legs and antennae are lighter in their appearance.

Depending on the species if ants, a colony can contain hundreds or thousands of ants. Like other ants, pavement ants often travel long distances in search of food, so making the journey from the patio to the kitchen is never a problem.

Unlike the odorous ant species, they have a cluster of hairs on the end of their abdomen and also 2 nodes ahead of their abdomen. Their heads and thorax have fine grooves.

 

Why you are facing a Pavement Ant Problem

Pavement ants are known not to harm humans or pose any threat to them, but they can cause damage to your property, especially the foundation walls. An annoying common problem for most people all over the world is having carpenter ants in the house. To block their entry of pavement ants into the house, you have to know what's attracting them to your house.

Some of the factors that attract pavement ants menace include;

 

Available Food

Food fragments or crumbs are forgotten under appliances, kitchen counters, or floors. Ants will always forage for food to sustain their colonies. They are very intelligent animals. Pavement ants normally store food whenever there is plenty in preparation for tough months like winter. Therefore if you leave dirty dishes or store food in containers that do not have tight-fitting lids, then you are attracting trouble.

 

Water leaks in your house

If there is any standing water on the pavement slabs, basements, or any other spot around your home, then pavement ants and other pests will always set base. Unlike humans, pavement ants drink water not only to quench their thirst but also to sustain their colony. They always drink water in excess just to transport it.

 

Heat source

If you have loose windows and doors or cracks in the walls, then you a likely to suffer a pavement ant infestation. You become more vulnerable if you have leaks, small piles of leftovers, and cracks because they can easily survive if these are available.

Just before winter, a pavement ant colony migrates to warmer places, and your house is always the destination. To avoid this, ensure that the ground-level masonry walls are waterproof with zero cracks. Dead trees should also be uprooted before your house foundations are laid because that is where ants build nests.

 

Signs Of A Pavement Ant Infestation

An early detection that you have an ant infestation in your house is seeing ants around your food source or finding small layers of dirt in your driveway or near your doorstep. You may also encounter them in the bathroom or the kitchen.

 

Where Do Pavement Ants Nest?

Pavement ants often build their nest underground in areas with very little vegetation, like under sidewalks, and driveways, alongside garages and houses. They also love building nests under logs, stones, and along curbs and cracks of pavement.

When you spot any ant nests around your home, contact a pest control expert to get rid of this ant problem. If you do not act, you risk losing wooden structures around the occupied areas to these destructive insects.

 

How to Identify Pavement Ants Infestation

Helpfully, pavement ants leave little piles of soil or sand beside their nest i.e., driveways, courtyards, and paving stones, giving you a clue to their presence and the location of their nest.

Are pavement ants harmful?

Pavement ants are harmless but destructive insects that are unbearable to live with when they invade your home. These insects do not pose any health & property threat.

Moreover, pavement ants are considered docile since they do not bite. Unless pavement ants feel threatened, they can sting. These invasive ants do not pose any health risks, but they can cause food contamination while they forage.

If you are battling an ant problem kindly and looking for a professional pest control company, look no further! Our experienced personnel at Secret Agent pest control North York has got you covered.