Pest Control Community

            Spring is definitely my favorite season of the year.  The weather is getting warmer.  The trees are beginning to blossom.  The days are getting longer.  What a wonderful time to enjoy the great outdoors.  But, there is just one thing about the spring that many people, particularly home and property owners are not too fond of, …distinguishing the difference between swarming ants and swarming termites, also known as alates.

            Before I get into differences between swarming ants and swarming termites, let me tell you a little something about termites.  Reticulitermes flavipes (in laymen’s terms, Eastern subterranean termites) are the most common form of termites in our area.  Termites are the #1 cause of wood damage to homes in the United States.  They are social insects that use a caste system in their colony, consisting of worker termites up to the king and queen.  The king and queen are the primary reproductives that start a colony.  The workers are the ones that go out looking for food, feed the colony members, and may eventually grow into the reproductive termites, the alates.  Typically when the weather goes from cold to warm, i.e. spring, the swarmers emerge from the nest.  Many times, you may see tunnels of mud on wood in your home with holes broken into them.  These exit holes are often where swarming termites emerge.  After they land on the ground, the wings break off, and they search for a mate.  These two alates become the king and queen of the new termite colony.

            Swarming ants are very similar in activity to swarming termites, but your average person wouldn’t be able to tell the difference between the two, especially since swarming ants and termites are the same size.  But it is possible to distinguish the difference between them with the naked eye.  Let’s start from the top.  The antennae of swarming ants and termites are noticeably different.  Termites have straight antennae, while ants have bent (or elbowed) antennae.  Still not sure what you have flying around your home?  No problem, let’s work our way to the wings.  Termites and ants have 2 pairs of wings.  While termites’ wings are equal in size, ants’ wings are not the same size with obvious venation.  If you still aren’t sure, there is one more major difference between the two insects.  The difference in abdomen size in a key indicator.  A termite’s waist is broad and straight.  An ant’s waist is pinched and thin, similar to that of a wasp.  So let’s recap: antennae, wing size, and waist size are the three major differences in swarming termites vs. swarming ants.  The next time you see a swarm on your property, take the time to capture a sample of the insect and study its shape.  When you make that phone call to American Pest Management to solve your tough pest problem, you will be able to provide a detail explanation of what pest problem you are dealing with.

TAGS: American Pest Management,  Termites, Pest Control, Ants, Swarming