Thief Ants
Appearance:
Golden-yellow ants. They are one of the smallest ants found infesting buildings, measuring less than 1/16-inch in length.
Habitat:
Thief ants derive their name from their habit of locating their colonies close to those of other ants to steal that ant's food and even capture and eat the other ant's eggs and larvae. They tunnel into the nest of the neighboring ants and make their way to the brood chambers where larvae, pupae, and eggs are kept. Once there, the thief ant foragers live up to their name by carrying off the eggs and brood of their hosts. The stolen brood becomes the food of the thief ants. Some thief ants occasionally become household pests, living in nests constructed in cracks, under floors, and behind baseboards. In homes, trails are often seen in bathrooms and kitchens and in and around windows where the ants can find moisture and food.
They nest outdoors in soil, trash and rotten wood and tree cavities. Finding the nests is extremely difficult, so thief ant control is best handled by professionals. Thief ants commonly enter structures during hot, dry weather.
Diet:
Thief ants prefer high-protein foods, but will feed on sweets. They eat almost any organic matter, including insects, honeydew, seeds, meats, fruit, bread crumbs, oils, nuts, pet foods and dairy products. Thief ants may forage on greasy scraps that they find in the house.
Solutions:
What you can do: It is wise to quickly clean up food (including pet food) and beverage spills from floors, countertops, porches and decks to discourage foraging by these ants indoors and near residences/buildings. Food items should be stored in airtight containers, if possible.
Professional Solutions:
Thief ants can be difficult to control. Often they are mistaken for Pharaoh ants; unfortunately, the baits used to control the Pharaoh ant may not be effective for thief ants. The first step your Quik-Kill service technician will do is to locate their nests, by following the trail of foraging workers back from their food source.
Click here to request additional information or to schedule your free inspection to determine treatment recommendations.
Locations
Proudly serving and providing pest elimination (not pest control !) to Central Illinois and North Central Illinois area since 1968, including the counties of LaSalle (Cedar Point, Dana, Earlville, Grand Ridge, Kangley, La Salle, Leland, Leonore, Lostant, Marseilles, Mendota, Naplate, North Utica, Oglesby, Ottawa, Peru, Ransom, Rutland, Sheridan, Streator, Tonica, Troy Grove), Livingston (Campus, Chatsworth, Cornell, Cullom, Dwight, Emington, Fairbury, Flanagan, Forrest, Long Point, Odell, Pontiac, Reading, Saunemin, Strawn), McLean(Anchor, Arrowsmith, Bellflower, Bloomington, Carlock, Chenoa, Colfax, Cooksville, Danvers, Downs, Ellsworth, Gridley, Heyworth, Hudson, Le Roy, Lexington, McLean, Normal, Saybrook, Stanford, Towanda), Bureau (Arlington, Buda, Bureau Junction, Cherry, Dalzell, De Pue, Dover, Hollowayville, Kasbeer, La Moille, Ladd, Malden, Manlius, Mineral, Neponset, New Bedford, Ohio, Princeton, Seatonville, Sheffield, Spring Valley, Tiskilwa, Van Orin, Walnut, Wyanet, Zearing), DuPage (Addison, Bensenville, Bloomingdale, Bolingbrook, Carol Stream, Clarendon Hills, Darien, Downers Grove, Elmhurst, Glendale Heights, Glen Ellyn, Itasca, Lisle, Lombard, Medinah, Naperville, Oakbrook, Roselle, Villa Park, Warrenville, Westmont, West Chicago, Wheaton, Willowbrook, Winfield, Woodbridge, Wood Dale, York Center), Grundy (Aux Sable, Braceville, Carbon Hill, Coal City, Diamond, Dwight, East Brooklyn, Gardner, Godley, Kinsman, Mazon, Minooka, Morris, Nettle Creek, Saratoga, Seneca, South Wilmington, Verona, Wauponsee), Kane (Burlington, Carpentersville, Elburn, Elgin, Geneva, Gilberts, Hampshire, Lily Lake, North Aurora, Pingree Grove, Sleepy Hollow, St. Charles, South Elgin, Sugar Grove, Virgil, West Dundee), Kankakee (Aroma Park, Bonfield, Bourbonnais, Bradley, Buckingham, Essex, Grant Park, Herscher, Hopkins Park, Irwin, Kankakee, Manteno, Momence, Reddick, St. Anne, Sun River Terrace, Union Hill), Kendall (Boulder Hill, Bristol, Lisbon, Millbrook, Millington, Newark, Oswego, Plano, Yorkville), Lee (Amboy, Ashton, Compton, Dixon, Franklin Grove, Harmon, Maytown, Nelson, Paw Paw, Steward, Sublette, West Brooklyn), Putnam (Granville, Hennepin, Magnolia, Mark, McNabb, Standard), Will (Beecher, Bolingbrook, Braidwood, Crest Hill, Frankfort, Joliet, Lakewood Shores, Lockport, Manhattan, Mokena, Monee, New Lenox, Romeoville, Shorewood, Steger, University Park), Woodford (Bay View Garden, Benson, Cazenovia, Congerville, Cruger, Goodfield, El Paso, Eureka, Germantown Hills, Kappa, Metamora, Minonk, Panola, Roanoke, Secor, Spring Bay, Washburn)
