Pharaoh ants
The pharaoh ant is different from the other types of ants because of its small size: the workers are about 1,5 to 2,5 mm and the males, a bit less than 3 mm whereas the bigger queens may reach 5 mm. It lives in a big colony which may contain more than 300 000 ants. Worker ants are red whereas queens are darker. One of its particularities is that a colony can contain many queens spread out in different places in the nest. In case the nest is attacked by the use of pesticides or by a disruption such as flooding, a queen may flee the nest with workers and their eggs in order to start a new colony elsewhere. This new colony is called a bud colony and will stay in contact with the main nest.
Male ants and queens mate inside the nest unlike the majority of ants that mate while flying. A queen produces almost 400 eggs and lives for an average of 6 to 7 months. Fertilized eggs become future queens or workers whereas non-fertilized eggs will become males. After hatching, a period of about 40 days is all that’s needed for the larva to become an adult.
- Presence of ants in the house, especially in the kitchen and the bathroom.
- Presence of ants in food. (cereals and anything sweet)