Ants with wings

Ants with wings are alarming to see in your home.  The typical homeowner automatically thinks that when they see this they have termites.  This may be the case, but there are far more instances when ants with wings aren’t termites at all.

There are many insects that have wings.  In fact, an ant with wings may in fact actually be an ant.  Typically in CT the following ants have wings  carpenter ants, pavement ants, citronella ants, or little black ants.  In their reproductive stage ALL ants including the one’s mentioned have wings.  All ants with wings will have 4; two long and two short.  If this is difficult to see then look at the body.  Ants have three body sections.  A head, an abdomen and a thorax.  Termite reproductives have wings as well.  However they have four wings all equal in length and they’re clear in color.

Termites with wings http://envirocarepestcontrol.net/connecticut-termite-exterminators/

The typical scenario for the homeowner who actually has termites is the following.  You’ll come home one day and find hundreds of tiny black bugs dead or dying on the floor.  In the same area you’ll be able to see thousands of discarded white wings.  When termites “swarm” they do so at about 10 am in the morning on a day when the temperature is about 65-70 degrees.  For ideal conditions there should also have been some recent rain.

This swarming is the first sign that you’ve got an active termite colony feeding on your home.  The swarming reproductives do no damage, but they should push you into action to get a professional termite inspection.

Swarming Ants http://envirocarepestcontrol.net/ant-exterminator-ct/

As stated before in CT we have many ants that while in their reproductive form have wings.  Most ants are little more than a nuisance, but carpenter ants can actually be a serious issue.  Carpenter ant reproductives will swarm around window and door frames.  The bodies of these ants will vary in size as the females are much larger than the males.  If you see this I’d advise a professional take care of the issue as a carpenter ant colony is living within your home.

Be cautious, but don’t panic when you see flying ants it may not be termites.  Call a professional pest control company like Envirocare Pest Control, LLC.  Our team knows what they’re looking at and how to take care of the problem.

You now know what to do for this problem, what about those pesky mosquitoes?