As winter arrives and temperatures drop, people and pets head
indoors for warmth. And Argentine ants are marching in to get
warm, too.
“If you have them, you definitely know it,” said
Dan Suiter, an entomologist with the University of Georgia
College
of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. “They travel
in trails into kitchens, offices and bathrooms searching for
warmth,
food and water.”
Much Smaller Than Fire
Ants
Argentine ants are small, just an eighth of an inch long.
Native
to South America, they were accidentally introduced into the
United
States more than 100 years ago in New Orleans coffee
shipments.
“Since then, they have spread throughout the southeastern
states and into southern California and Hawaii,” Suiter
said.
“They are one of the most pestiferous and most
difficult-to-control ants in the United States. A single colony
can consist of hundreds
of thousands of ants.”
During the summer months, Argentine ants travel indoors
searching
for water and food.
“They are horrible in the summertime,” Suiter said.
“In the spring, they’ll move back outdoors to live in the
soil and mulch.”
Winter
Homes Are Inside Walls
During the winter, the ants live indoors in the walls of
offices
and homes. “There isn’t really much you can do to treat them
yourself in the winter, because they are most likely living in
your walls and in other protected areas,” Suiter said.
“I’ve
gotten a rash of calls over the past three weeks from homeowners
who are fighting these ants.”
You can reduce your chances of having these ants in your home
by thoroughly rinsing all drink cans before placing them into
the garbage or recycling bin and by emptying garbage containers
frequently.
“Like any other time of year, don’t leave any food or
drinks out,” Suiter said. “These ants can find a Coke
can with just a little syrup left in it. They love sugar and
they’ll
show up by the thousands, literally over night.”
Don’t Try to Spray Them
Away
Suiter doesn’t recommend arming yourself with an
over-the-counter
insect killer. “There aren’t a lot of good products out
there
for homeowners to use,” he said.
“You can spray the ants and get what we call the revenge
factor,” he said. “You kill a lot of ants that way, but you will
never get rid of them because you haven’t hit the nest where all
the queens are.”
If you reach a point of desperation, Suiter recommends
calling
a professional pest control company for help.
“There is one new product coming out called Termidor that
the professionals will have access to that performs well against
Argentine ants,” Suiter said. “It’s a spray for use
outside the home.”
