What are common ants?
Ants are a kind of insects live in group. Ants form colonies that range in size from living in small natural cavities to highly organised colonies that may occupy large territories and consist of millions of individuals. Some of ants are categorised as pests, such as Argentine ant, pavement ant, banded sugar ant and red imported fire ant. Ants can be classified as omnivores. This is because they eat every food, but ants are more prefer sweet foods.
What does ants cause?
- Raid stored food, seek water sources, even damage indoor structures and damage agricultural crops directly.
- Sting or bite.
- The most common problem is Nuisance.
- Contaminating food.
- Leave smelly odor.
How to find it?
First, ants live in large quantity, you may find any colonies of ants in the house or premises. Second, ant trail in and out of your home or premises. This is because some of the ant species will lay down a pheromone trail to a food source. This trail leads other ants from the colony to the food source. Third, observe the cracks of wall or floor. This is because the ants might build their nest inside it. Forth, look for mount of dirt. This is because ants will excavate dirt from their nests, leaving highly visible piles of fine dirt. Fifth, check the rotten wood. This is because for some species of ants, there are nothing more suitable than rotten wood to build their nests.
Solution
First, set up ant baits is the most common solution for ant problem. It’s works for the most common species we encountered. This is because not every species of ants will attract by sweet things. For example, carpenter ants are more prefer protein. Second, spray the trail that left by ants. To cut of the abundance of pheromone trails, we need to fill up a spray bottle with equal parts vinegar and water or lemon juice and water. Then, spray the mixture on an area where you see ants can disrupt their pheromone trail and make it harder for ants to find their way back. Third, use baby powder in ant hot spots. This is because ants don’t like to cross the powder and get it on their bodies.
Prevention
First, don’t just wipe down surfaces. Vacuum every day, paying close attention to the baseboards, behind furniture and appliances as well as other areas you might miss. Second, ensure removing garbage from the premises immediately. This is because ants will get into your trash. Third, spray insecticide around doors, windows and other entry points. This can avoid more ants enter the house.
