Small Ants and their Control in Georgia

Ants are members of the family Formicidae, which contains more then 12,000 species; but only a few of these are significant pests in Georgia.

Argentine Ants

Argentine ants are common pests in Atlanta and throughout Georgia. They are not native to North America, but are believed to have been introduced to the United States in coffee shipments from Brazil in 1890 or thereabouts.

Argentine ants are dull brown in color, and workers average about 1/8" in length. They are primarily sugar and plant feeders, and are significant agricultural and garden pests because they tend to and protect destructive insects like aphids and scale insects in order to feed on the honeydew that they produce.

Argentine ants differ from most other ants in that colonies can have multiple queens. They're also one of the most successful ant species, often killing or driving other ant species out of a territory and taking over their nests.

One major reason for the success of Argentine ants is that they have such a remarkable degree of genetic uniformity that all of the world's Argentine ant colonies are believed to be members of just a handful of genetic supercolonies. As a result, members of different colonies don't fight each other, which almost certainly contributes to the specie's success by eliminating territoriality between different Argentine ant colonies.

Other Small Pest Ant Species Found in Georgia

Other than Argentine Ants, carpenter ants and fire ants, there are a handful of small ant species that occasionally come to the attention of Georgia exterminators. Most of these ants usually nest outdoors and enter buildings while foraging for food, but some of them occasionally nest indoors, especially in damp areas. Treatment usually consists of correcting conducive conditions, sealing cracks around the exterior of the building, applying exterior insecticides, and (if needed) performing spot treatments of interior areas.

Acrobat Ants

Acrobat ants get their name from their habit of raising their abdomens up in the air when they are threatened or disturbed, making them look like they're doing handstands. They're yellowish to dark brown in color, and workers average a bit over 1/8" in length. They feed on a variety of foods including honeydew, plant juices, and occasionally other insects. They're also able to emit a putrid odor when they are threatened.

Acrobat ants usually live outside in dead tree limbs, firewood, decaying mulch, leaf litter, or other damp places rich in decaying organic matter. They also nest inside in wall voids or other areas that are kept moist by leaky pipes or condensation. Correcting these moisture problems is especially important to effective control of acrobat ants.

Odorous House Ants

Odorous house ants average about 1/8" in length and are dark brown in color. They are omnivorous, feeding on sweets as well as dead animals and insects. They're named for the unpleasant smell they emit when crushed, which many people say smells like rotten coconut.

Odorous house ants usually nest outdoors in the soil under rocks, fallen tree limbs, mulch, and leaf litter. Occasionally, however, they will nest inside, especially in structural voids in warm, damp areas. Locating the nesting area and correcting conducive conditions are important for effective control of odorous house ants.

Crazy Ants

Crazy ants are named for their erratic, rapid movements. They're about 1/8" in length and grayish black in color, with long, coarse hairs covering most of their bodies. They usually nest outside in rotten wood, tree stumps, under rocks or other objects, or in planters. Occasionally they'll also nest indoors in warm, damp areas such as wall voids in kitchens and bathrooms.

Entire crazy ant colonies have been known to up and move when conditions become unfavorable, which complicates their control. If conducive conditions in one area are corrected, the colony may just move to another. A combination of habitat modification, exclusion, and the judicious use of insecticides is usually needed for effective crazy ant control.

Little Black Ants

Little black ants are tiny, with workers averaging about 1/16" in length; and range in color from dark brown to jet black. They are omnivorous and will eat meat, sweets, vegetables, fruits, or pretty much any other food they come across. Keeping your home meticulously clean and free of food scraps is vital to effective little black ant control.

Little black ants usually live outside in rotting logs, cracks in cement, under exterior siding, in gaps around door or window frames, or in open fields, and enter homes to feast on tiny food scraps left by humans. They also occasionally nest indoors, usually in small gaps between wooden construction elements, behind woodwork, under carpets, or in gaps in masonry.

Pavement Ants

Pavement ants are named for the parallel line markings on their head, which look vaguely like the lines on a highway. They also are commonly seen on sidewalks and other exterior concrete and paved areas, but so are many other ant species, leading to frequent misidentification of other ant species as pavement ants.

Pavement ants usually nest outdoors under rocks and poured cement, in cracks in the sidewalk or curb, or other protected spaces. They also nest indoors, usually in cracks in masonry, in the space under exterior thresholds, or in the gap between the sill plate and the foundation.

Pharaoh Ants

Pharaoh ants are tiny ants, averaging 1/16" in length. They're pale yellow to reddish yellow in color, with black markings on their abdomens. They commonly nest indoors, especially in wall voids, especially those through which heat or hot water pipes run. They also tend to travel through buildings inside electrical conduits, pipe insulation, and other hidden pathways. Their secretive habits make Pharaoh ants particularly difficult to control.

Pharaoh ants' tiny size and ability to get into sealed food packages, along with their ability to spread serious diseases such as Salmonellosis, Staphylococcus, and Streptococcus, make them a significant public health pest.

Ant Control Gallery (More to come -- stay tuned!)