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October 16, 2019TweetSharePinShare0 SharesMore Differences Between Termites and Flying Ants?5 (100%) 2 votes
There is nothing more distubing than seeing winged insects swarming around on your home or business.
After all, termites and ants are known to creep in and eat away at buildings and cause damage to them. The structural damage can cause a financial loss if caught too late.
Either way, both flying ants and termites can cause a million dollars’ worth of damage. The best way to determine which pest is found in your home or business is to accurately determine them and actions should be taken to get rid of them and save your property or business.
Having pests in your house or office building such as ants or termites (or both) is never fun.
Termites are one of the most notorious pests, with an infestation quick to spot by a swarm of flying insects. But, not all of these are termites.
These swarming insects might be flying ants. To the untrained person, these two look almost similar, but they differ in many ways. Read on to help you determine the differences between termites and flying ants.
Flying Ants
Flying ants, also called carpenter ants, are swarmers with wings with pinched waists, smaller hind wings smaller than the front wings, and elbowed antennae. Their bodies can be reddish, brown or black in color.
While the life span for worker ants go for a few months, queen ants can live for years. Flying ants pests feed on other insects, food debris lying around the home, seeds, and nectar.
READ ALSO: Pest Control Tips for the Commercial Buildings
Flying ants nest in the wood and can be seen out in the open. Normally, they are mostly found nesting in moist rotting wood, but may also be nesting in dry wood.
If you see an infestation of red ants or a group of flying ants, the first step you’ll want to do is replace or make do of the rotted wood.
Pictures of warrior Termites
Next, using an insecticide can get rid of these ants if they have built their nest in your home. Using ant bait can work if you can’t get to their nest. These ant baits are commercially available in hardware stores and home centers online.
Termites
There are two kinds of termites, namely the swarmer and the worker.
Swarmers are the reproductive kind. Black or brown in color, and measure about 4mm long.
The workers, on the other hand, are lighter in color, about 3-4mm long, and are commonly seen in broken woods and mud tubes.
Termites have wings, but lose them soon after they mate. Generally, they have wings of equal length, wide bodies without pinched waists, and have straight antennae.
These insects thrive on paper, wood, and other cellulose-based items. Workers survive a year or two, while queens can live for many, many years.
Both termites and flying ants swarm as part of the mating process. The males die soon after, while the queens drop their wings to search a nesting area. The sudden appearance of swarming termites or ants in flight is a positive indicator that there is an infestation nearby.
READ ALSO: Winged Termites Swarmers: Identification, Causes, Prevention & Treatment Cost
Here are some ways do know the differences between termites and flying ants:
While both species have four wings, termites’ wings are uniform in size. Meanwhile, winged ants have larger wings in the front that are noticeable than the pair in the back.
Flying ants’ antennae are elbowed; termites’ are almost straight.
Termite wings are two times as long as their bodies; ant wings are more proportionate to their bodies and shorter.
Termites have a broad waist and mostly have the same width along with their entire bodies, while ants appear segmented, which is very distinct because of their thin waist.
About the author: Dane Kolbaba is an owner at WatchdogPestControl.com. He resides in Chandler, Arizona with his wife and four furry friends. He has a passion for helping others and enjoys surrounding himself with interesting and motivating people. He has maneuvered through several startup businesses and enjoys mentoring others on how to be get an idea into a reality. Aside from running several businesses including Watchdog Pest Control, he enjoys billiards, corn hole, and all types of live music as well as sporting events.
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