APPENDIX 10: ANTS
MANAGEMENT AND CONTROL OF ANTS
1. GENERAL INFORMATION
Ants are among the most prevalent pests in the household. They are found in any
environment where they have food and water. Once ants have established a colony
inside or near a building, they may be difficult to control. On outdoor (and sometimes
indoor) plants, ants protect and care for honeydew-producing insects such as
aphids, increasing damage from these pests. Ants also perform many useful
functions in the environment, such as feeding on other pests (e.g. fleas, caterpillars
and termites), dead insects, and decomposing tissue from dead animals.
Ants are close relatives of bees and wasps, and are often confused with termites.
Three main characteristics distinguish ants from termites:
The ant’s abdomen is constricted where it joins the thorax, giving it the
appearance of having a thin waist; the termites abdomen is broad where it
joins the thorax;
The ant’s hind wings are smaller than its front wings; the termites front and
hind wings are about the same size (shortly after their flights to find new
colonies, both ants and termites remove their wings so wings may not always
be present);
Winged female ants and worker ants have elbowed antennae; the termite’s
antennae are never elbowed.
Ants undergo complete metamorphosis, passing through egg, larval, pupae and
adult stages. Larvae are immobile and wormlike and do not resemble adults. Ants
are social insects with duties divided among different types or castes of adult
individuals. Queens conduct the reproductive functions of a colony and are larger
than any other ants: they lay eggs and sometimes participate in the feeding and
grooming of larvae. Female workers, who are sterile, gather food, feed and care for
the larvae, build tunnels and defend the colony; these workers make up the bulk of
the colony. Males do not participate in colony activities; their only apparent purpose
is to mate with the queens. Few in number, the males are fed and cared for by the
workers.
Inside a building, household ants feed on sugars, syrups, honey, fruit juice, fats and
meats. Long trails of thousands of ants may lead from nests to food sources, causing
considerable concern among building occupants. Outdoors they are attracted to
sweet, sticky secretions, or honeydew, produced by aphids.
Ant usually nest in soil; nests are often found next to buildings, along sidewalks, or in
close proximity to food sources such as trees and plants that harbor honeydew
producing insects. They also construct nests under boards, stones, tree stumps or
plants, and sometimes under buildings or other protected places. They enter
buildings seeking food and water, warmth and shelter, or a refuge from dry, hot
weather or flooded conditions. They may appear suddenly in buildings of other food
sources become unavailable or weather conditions change.
A new colony is typically established by a single newly mated queen. After weeks or
months of confinement underground, she lays her first eggs. After the eggs hatch,
she feeds the white, legless larvae with her own metabolized wing muscles and fat
bodies until they pupate. Several weeks later the pupae transform into sterile female
adult workers, and the first workers dig their way out of the nest to collect food for
themselves, for the queen (who continues to lay eggs) and for subsequent broods of
larvae. As numbers increase, new chambers and galleries are added to the nest.
After a few years, the colony begins to produce winged male and female ants, which
leave the nest to mate and form new colonies.
2. MANAGEMENT AND CONTROL OF ANTS
Ant management requires diligent efforts and the combined use of mechanical,
cultural, sanitation and sometimes chemical methods of control. It is unrealistic and
impractical to attempt to totally eliminate ants from an outdoor area. Focus your
management efforts on excluding ants from buildings and eliminating their food and
water sources. Become aware of the seasonal cycle of ants in your area and be
prepared for annual invasions by sealing the building in time.
2.1. MECHANICAL CONTROL
Exclusion and sanitation: To keep ants out of buildings, seal cracks and crevices
around foundations that provide entry from the outside, using silicon. Ants prefer to
make trails along structural elements, such as wires or pipes, and frequently use
them to enter and travel within a structure to their destination. Indoors, eliminate
cracks and crevices wherever possible especially in kitchens and other food
preparation and storage areas. Store attractive food items such as sugar, syrup,
honey and other sweets in closed containers that have been washed to remove
residues from outer surfaces. Rinse out empty soft drink containers and remove
them from the building. Thoroughly clean up grease and spills. Do not store rubbish
indoors. Look for indoor nesting sites such as potted plants. If ants are found,
remove containers from the building and submerge the pot for 20 minutes in
standing water that contains a few droplets of liquid soap. Ant nests may be
associated with plants that support large populations of honeydew-producing insects.
Avoid planting such trees and shrubs near to buildings.
2.2. CHEMICAL CONTROL
Coopex ant dust (made by AgrEvo) is the only chemical that is legal to use against
ants in the Kruger National Park. Dust freely along runs and around nests, repeating
where necessary. Fendona (see cockroach control) is also an effective and
approved chemical used in ant control. This however, is for use on man-made
structures only, not for application to vegetation/in gardens etc.