Ant extermination

Everything you need to know

Ant Extermination

Exterminating ants can be difficult, but there are some things you need to know. Here is the behavior of ants that can cause major headaches for you and your home:

Entry

Ants can penetrate the smallest cracks. They infiltrate in search of water and sugary or greasy substances in kitchens or storerooms.

Smell trails

Ants leave an invisible chemical trail that contains pheromones. The others will follow it once they find the food source.

Nest locations

They can nest anywhere in and around your home: in lawns, walls, stumps, even under foundations.

Ant colony size

Colonies can number from 300,000 to 500,000 individuals, and entire colonies can uproot and move rapidly when threatened.

Ant colony life

A colony of ant can live a relatively long life. Worker ants can live for seven years and the queen can live for up to 15 years.

DIY

Most do-it-yourself ant control methods only kill the ants you see and it is not advisable to solve an ant problem.

Only truly effective extermination treatments can penetrate and destroy nests to prevent the return of these pests. More so, home remedies fail to take into account that different types of ant infestations require different treatments!

Life cycle of ants

The life cycle of ants has four distinct and very different life stages: eggs, larvae, pupae and adults. This is known as a complete makeover. It usually takes several weeks to several months to complete the life cycle, depending on the ant species and environmental factors.

Eggs

A female ant that successfully mates with a male ant will become a queen ant that lays eggs. Fertile queens choose a sheltered place to start a nest (colony) and lay eggs there. Ant eggs are very small – only about half a millimeter in diameter. The eggs are also oval, white and transparent.

Larvae

After about 1-2 weeks in the egg stage, ant larvae look like larvae. This stage has a voracious appetite, and adult ants spend a lot of time feeding the larvae with food and liquids which they digest and regurgitate.

Pupae

Once the larvae molt and shed their skin, they transform into the pupal stage. Pupae look a bit like adults except that their legs and antennae are bent and pressed against the pupa’s body. Initially, ant pupae are usually white, but slowly darken as they age. Depending on ant species, pupae can be housed in a protective cocoon.

Adult

Once the pupa is finished, the adult ant enters the scene. Upon emergence, the adult ant is fully grown, but darkens as it ages. Adult ants are one of three different colony castes; queens, workers or men. Queens are fertile females that lay all the eggs in a colony. The workers are females that do not breed but collect food to feed the larvae, maintain and clean the nest. The workers are wingless, and it is the worker stage that is seen foraging for food or defending the colony from intruders. Male ants are winged, but their only job is to mate with queens during the swarming process.

Pavement ants in Montreal and elsewhere

The pavement ants are generally found throughout Montreal and are light brown to black with lighter appendages than the rest of the body. They are about 2.5 to 3 mm long, with parallel lines on the head and thorax. They have 12-segment antennae with a three-segment club.
Here is a bit more information about their behaviors, diet and habits:

Behavior

Pavement ants invade buildings in search of food. Their nests are usually outdoors under stones, along curbs or in cracks in the pavement. However, they can also nest indoors in walls and under floors.

Reproduction

Breeding occurs when winged males and females swarm, often in June and July. After mating, the females search for a new nesting site and become the queen of a new colony.

Diet

Ants feed on a wide variety of foods, including meats, fats, live and dead insects, seeds, and honeydew from aphids. They prefer to eat fatty foods, and can absorb many foods eaten by humans. Moreover, they search for food for their colonies and set up paths leading to the food sources of their nests. Worker ants enter homes to feed and can become a nuisance when large groups infest a kitchen or garden patio. They can also sting and bite.

Signs of a pavement ant infestation

Worker ants are the most likely sign, but other indicators can be small piles of excavated material or even swarms. Ant nests are difficult to locate, so the most effective way to manage an infestation is to contact a pest control professional to completely exterminate the pavement ant.

Extermination of pharaoh ants in Quebec

Pharaoh ants are another common species of ant, many of which can be found in and around Quebec. Pharaoh ants are very small – about 2mm long. They have light yellow bodies with red and black markings on the abdomen. Take a look at the following for more information on pharaoh ant extermination:

Habit

Pharaoh ants can take advantage of heating in buildings in order to survive the winter. Infestations usually occur in restaurant areas. They nest in well protected and hidden areas through a structure. In addition, they can also nest outdoors, in lawns or gardens, in warm climates.

Reproduction of these ants

Pharaoh ants grow from egg to adult in about 38 days. Females live up to 4 to 12 months, and workers only live up to 10 weeks.

Diet

Pharaoh ants eat food of all types, but mostly sweets. They will also eat other insects.

Carpenter ants in the Laurentians

Carpenter ants are a destructive pest widespread in the Laurentians.

In fact, carpenter ants are one of the most valuable insects we have on earth. They chew up tons of wood and turn it into fine sawdust that rots and provides compost for new growth. However, because they penetrate man-made structures, they are also considered one of the most destructive common pests we have in Canada.

Most species of carpenter ants establish their initial nest in rotting wood. But, once in place, the ants extend their tunnel into sound wood and can do considerable damage to a structure. These species usually nest in standing trees (living or dead), in stumps or in tree trunks on the forest floor.

As many houses are built in wooded areas, well-established and vigorous colonies are readily available in the immediate vicinity to attack these dwellings. This is especially true when the homeowner insists that the home be built with minimal tree setback.

The importance of a pest control professional in getting rid of carpenter ants

Many pest control professionals consider carpenter ants to be the most difficult pest to deal with in the industry. With all the training and experience they have, there are homes that take a long time and a number of treatments to completely eradicate these destructive insects.</p > Many homeowners call a professional ant exterminator from Rive-Nord Extermination after they failed to solve the problem themselves. This situation is usually more difficult to deal with because the owner has been spraying pesticides randomly, killing obvious evidence and scattering satellite nests. Of course, this also increases the cost.

If you are not prepared to spend hours in your attic and crawl space wearing a respirator, rubber gloves, coveralls and a hat, then it would be wise to call a professional to do the job properly!

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Ant extermination