Ghost Ants
They are called ghost ants because of the size and color of their legs. Their pale legs and abdomens are small, making it harder for you to identify them. The worker ants measure 1.5 mm in length and feature dark thoraxes and heads. When crushed, they emit a coconut-like smell.
Habits, Behavior and Diet
These tropical ants have lived for years in some parts of Florida. They travel from one place to another in crates, boxes, potted plants and household goods. Since they find it hard to survive extremely cold conditions, they live in warm greenhouses and buildings in northern states.
When they are not in a house, they establish their nests underground. You can find their nests beside logs, stones and piles of firewood. They get into houses and apartments through the trails they made along the ground. At times, they enter buildings by trailing on limbs of trees and utility lines. Inside a house, ghost ants tend to make nests in wall voids, baseboards and flowerpots. One colony can split into multiple nests. That is the reason you can see these ants trailing to and from many nests sites.
They feed on honeydew collected from insects that live on plants, such as aphids. Worker ants collect insects to meet the needs of the entire colony. Usually, ghost ants prefer to live on sweet things when they are indoors.
Reproduction
Queens produce a large number of eggs expanding their species. New colonies get formed as a result of a special process called budding when a queen along with several workers gets separated from a big colony to set up a new one. Based on the number of queens, many colonies can come into existence.
Do They Bite?
Ghost ants won’t bite or sting you unless you attack their nests. If bitten, you may feel slight pain and discomfort. However, if your house is infested with them, you have a big problem to deal with as these pests can set up nests inside and outside your house. Inside a house, they like to feed on sweets and other greasy insects and foods. Since they love to dwell in kitchens and bathrooms, food items get infected with disease-carrying organisms.
Ghost Ant Infestation
If ghost ants are running around your house carrying food, you have a ghost ant infestation.
Preventive methods
If you want to prevent an ant infestation, the first thing you need to do is to walk around in your house inspecting each area. Your next step is to take a look at the external areas of your house to look for places that can catch the eyes of ghost ants. Make sure there are no piles of firewood in your house. Similarly, remove the mulch from your home foundation to keep the ants away. The exterior doors should be closed snugly and any missing weather stripping should be replaced. If you live in a brick house, use plastic screens to close weep holes so that the ants can’t enter your house.
You need to be patient if you want to control ghost ants on your own. Since these ants may have several nests in your house, it is best that you hire a pest control professional to deal with this kind of problem.
Contact us today for a free consultation and we will be at your service.
Author: Sarefo / License: CC-BY-SA-3.0
Are You Ready To Start A Conversation?
Proudly Serving Florida
Proudly Serving New York
Manhattan, Bronx, Queens, Brooklyn, Staten Island, Westchester
Call for your free estimate today!
877-275-8676
Miami-Dade County: Aventura, Bal Harbour Village, Bay Harbor Islands, Biscayne Park , Coral Gables, Cutler Bay, Doral, El Portal, Florida City, Golden Beach, Hialeah, Hialeah Gardens, Homestead, Indian Creek Village, Islandia, Key Biscayne Village, Medley, Miami City, Miami Beach, Miami Gardens, Miami Shores Village, Miami Springs, North Bay Village, North Miami, North Miami Beach, Opa-Locka, Palmetto Bay Village, Pinecrest , South Miami, Sunny Isles Beach, Surfside, Sweetwater, Virginia Gardens and West Miami.
Broward County: Coconut Creek, Cooper City, Coral Springs, Dania Beach, Davie, Deerfield Beach, Fort Lauderdale, Hallandale Beach, Hillsboro Beach, Hollywood Florida, Lauderhill, Lauderdale Lakes, Lauderdale by the Sea, Lazy Lake, Lighthouse Point, Margate, Miramar, North Lauderdale, Oakland Park, Parkland, Pembroke Pines, Plantation, Pompano Beach, Sea Ranch Lakes, Southwest Ranches, Sunrise, Tamarac, West Park, Weston and Wilton Manors .
Palm Beach County: West Palm Beach , Boca Raton , Boynton Beach , Delray Beach , Greenacres , Jupiter , Lake Worth , Palm Beach Gardens , Royal Palm Beach and Wellington .
Monroe County: Key Largo , Islamorada , Marathon and Key West.
Ants: Acrobat Ant, Allegheny Mound Ant, Argentine Ant, Big-headed Ant, Carpenter Ant, Citronella Ant, Crazy Ant, Field Ant, Fire Ant, Ghost Ant, Harvester Ant, Little Black Ant, Moisture Ant, Odorous House Ant, Pavement Ant, Pharaoh Ant, Texas Leaf Cutter Ant, Thief Ant, Velvety Tree Ant and White-footed Ant.
Bitings Insects: Bed Bugs, Bird Lice, Cat Flea, House Mosquito, Human Head Lice, Kissing Bug, Pubic Lice and Thrips
Mosquitoes: Asian Tiger Mosquito, Aedes-Aegypti Mosquito and Culex Mosquito.
Cockroaches: American Cockroach, Asian Cockroach, Australian Cockroach, Brown Banded Cockroach, Cuban Cockroach, Florida Woods Cockroach, German Cockroach, Oriental Cockroach, Smoky Brown Cockroach, Surinam Cockroach and Woods Cockroach.
Flies: Blow Fly and Bottle Fly, Cluster Fly, Crane Fly, Face Fly, Flesh Fly, Fruit Fly, Fungus Gnat, House Fly, Drain Fly and Phorid Fly.
Rodents: Deer Mouse, House Mouse, Norway Rat, Pack Rat, Roof Rat, Vole and White-footed Mouse.
Spiders: Black Widow Spider , Brown Recluse Spider, Cellar Spider, Crab Spider, Domestic House Spider, Funnelweb Spider, Garden Spider, Ground Spider, Hobo Spider, House Spider, Jumping Spider, Spiny-backed Orb Weaver Spider, Tarantula, Wolf Spider and Yellow Sac Spider.
Stinging Pests: Africanized Honeybee, American Dog Tick, Bald-faced Hornet, Bed Bugs, Bird Lice, Bird Mite, Deer Tick, Brown Dog Tick, Bumblebee, Carpenter Bee, Cat Flea, European Hornet, Fire Ant, Honeybee, Human Head Lice, Kissing Bug, Lone Star Tick, Paper Wasp, Scorpion, Soft Tick, Thrips and Yellow Jacket.
Termites: Dampwood Termite, Drywood Termite, Formosan Subterranean Termite and Subterranean Termite.
Ticks and Mites: American Dog Tick, Bird Mite, Black-legged Tick, Brown Dog Tick, Clover Mite, Lone Star Tick and Soft Tick.
Other Pests: American Spider Beetle, Bean Weevil, Cigarette Beetle, Cowpea Weevil, Dried Fruit Beetle, Drugstore Beetle, Foreign Grain Beetles, Indian Meal Moth, Larder Beetle, Mediterranean Flour Moth, Red or Confused Flour Beetle, Rice & Granary Weevils, Sawtoothed & Merchant, Grain Beetles, Shiny Spider Beetle, Cabinet Beetles, Centipedes & Millipedes, Chinch Bugs and Earwigs.