Did you know that Georgia has over 60 species of ants? And did you know that, if left unchecked, these ant colonies can wreak havoc on your home?
If you’re an entomologist or just curious about ants, you’ll find that Georgia is home to many different types of ants, which can vary significantly in appearance, size, and strength.
Here are the types of ants in Georgia and how to get rid of them when they invade your space!
1. Carpenter Ants
Carpenter ants are one of the most common types of ants that you can find in Georgia. They typically nest outdoors under logs, trees, and other woodpiles but will nest indoors when cold outside.
Carpenter ants are usually black or brownish-black and about 1/4 long.
Males have wings, and queens have a larger body size than workers. These types of ants in Georgia feed on sweet liquids like honeydew from aphids and sap from plants.
They can damage wood by chewing through it for their nests which is why they are often known as wood destroyers.
Sealing leaks around your house is essential because carpenter ants will use this entryway into your home. If you notice a swarm of carpenter ants inside your home, call an exterminator immediately!
Several ant control products are available at local hardware stores, so you can quickly buy what you need.
Remember: don’t leave food out for them; get rid of excess water; sweep up dirt piles; keep garbage cans covered; store pet food in containers; and do not leave dirty dishes in the sink overnight.
2. Pharaoh Ants
Pharaoh ants are one of the most common ants in Georgia. These types of ants in Georgia originated from Africa and were first discovered in the U.S.U.S. at the 1876 Philadelphia Centennial Exposition.
Pharaoh ants are known for their dark brown color and long, slender bodies that can reach up to 3/16th inch.
This ant is typically found indoors, feeding on crumbs and liquids. Pharaoh ants will also eat other insects like silverfish or roaches if available.
The pharaoh ant tends to nest near water sources because they need moisture to survive.
If you suspect your home is infested with these pests, immediately call a professional pest control company like Bagshot Pest Control!
Getting help as soon as possible is essential because Pharaoh ants can spread quickly due to their high reproduction rates.
Pharaoh ants have the following types: workers, males, queens, and drones.
The queens and drones are not seen in everyday situations as they live within the colony and rarely come outside except during mating season or when food becomes scarce inside the territory.
These types of ants in Georgia very quickly swarm large areas to find food. Unlike other ants, which invade only occasionally, Pharaoh ants swarm continuously unless nearby resources are absent.
3. Crazy Ants
Crazy ants, also known as Rasberry ants or tawny crazy ants, are the only type of ants that invade homes. They’re often confused with fire ants because they both have a painful sting, but there are some critical differences between them.
Crazy ants usually appear during summer and live outside, whereas fire ant colonies live inside your home year-round.
Crazy ants typically make their nests under objects like rocks and logs, unlike fire ant nests found in soil or mulch near trees.
These types of ants in Georgia are harder to get rid of than other ant species because they don’t rely on outdoor food sources like other insects, so it’s challenging to starve them out.
To kill crazy ants, use an insecticide labeled for outdoor use and spray the perimeter of your house where you see activity.
4. Odorous House Ants
Odorous house ants may not be the most well-known type of ant in Georgia, but they’re certainly the ones you’ll want to get rid of first.
These little guys are attracted to sweet foods and can make a house smell like rotting fruit while they eat it. They also tend to swarm indoors, making them challenging to eliminate with insecticides.
To avoid these ants, keep food sealed tight and avoid leaving dishes out overnight.
If your home does become infested, try mixing 1/2 cup of sugar into a gallon of boiling water before pouring it into an empty spray bottle. The sugar will attract the odorous house ants to drink the mixture and die.
It’s important to remember that only some treatments work for all types of ants in Georgia. Different species prefer different foods, meaning some may get away from their colonies while others starve to death.
5. Argentine Ants
Argentine Ants are one of the most common types of ants in Georgia. They are named after their country of origin and can be found across the United States.
Argentine ants build small dirt mounds around their nests, with the colony living inside a tube constructed by workers on the surface.
This type of mound is typically smaller than those built by other ant species and might not have an opening at ground level, making it more difficult for homeowners to identify them.
These ants also prefer sweet foods over protein-rich ones and infest garbage cans or pet food dishes if they’re easily accessible outdoors. If you spot these tiny insects inside your home, don’t panic!
Argentines aren’t known to bite humans but may invade pantries and kitchens looking for sweets like cookies, chips, or soft drinks. All that means is now you need some bait station to eliminate them once and for all.
6. Pavement Ants
Pavement ants are the most common, and you will find them in your house. These ants will come into your home and eat crumbs, but they are not as dangerous as other ants.
Pavement ants are by far the most common type of ant that people will encounter within their homes.
These ants typically enter buildings and consume less dangerous crumbs than other ants. However, they cause many problems for homeowners because pavement ants can produce pheromones which attract more insects to the area and eventually cause a large infestation.
The best way to get rid of these different types of ants in Georgia would be by using a boric acid mixture or diatomaceous earth.
Both of these products can be found at any local hardware store. Diatomaceous earth kills the ants with an exoskeleton, absorbs water from them, dries them out, and then causes them to die from dehydration.
Boric acid mixtures work on pavement ants by dehydrating and killing them slowly.
7. Thief Ants
One type of ant you may find in your home is a thief ant. This species is known for taking other ants’ food, eggs, and items left out on counters or tables. Thief ants may also damage plants and feast on sugar-rich foods.
They often invade the kitchen, so keeping the area clean and free from food scraps is essential. If these different types of ants in Georgia are coming into your house, there are several steps you can take to get rid of them.
Place sticky traps near where they’re entering, seal entry points with caulk and put insecticide inside cracks around windowsills or doors that may be open.
One way to get rid of these ants is by using insecticides with active ingredients such as bifenthrin, cyfluthrin, permethrin, or tetramethrin. These ingredients can be found at hardware stores like Home Depot.
The time needed to achieve a pest control treatment will vary depending on how much the thief ant colony has grown and the treatment used. Treatments will require one week before all types of ants are eliminated from an infested location.
8. Red Imported Fire Ants
Red imported fire ants are one of the most commonly found in the United States. They’re also one of the most aggressive and challenging to get rid of. If you see red ants with darker heads, they’re likely red imported fire ants.
Fire ants If you notice what looks like red ants on your property without any nests around, it probably just fires ants foraging for food or water.
These types of ants in Georgia will swarm over anything that looks like prey, so keep small animals and children away if you see them feeding.
You can tell the difference between fire ants and other types by their black heads with an orange stripe down their back.
If you find these different types of ants in Georgia in your home, don’t panic! They are not as dangerous as red imported fire ants and can usually be controlled easily.
These types typically live outside but if you find them inside, close off all cracks where they might come in, then place Borax along the perimeter of the house.
9. Harvester Ants
Harvester ants are the most common type found in the southern U.S.U.S. and are also one of the most destructive.
They’re named for their tendency to carry grains, seeds, and other plant matter back to their nests. A telltale sign that you have harvester ants?
Their mounds will often have a pile of harvested material at the entrance.
Harvester ants are solitary creatures that don’t require a queen or males for reproduction, so they can be hard to get rid of without chemical pesticides.
To find out how to read on!
These types of ants in Georgia typically nest under rocks and inside decaying trees or logs. If they take up residence in your home, you may notice piles of grains and seeds near windowsills or doorways. If this sounds like your problem, we’ve got a few options for getting rid of them.
Try mixing dish soap with water to make a solution that’s non-toxic but is still lethal when ingested by these pests; place it near their food source or along the walls where they come into contact with humans.
Another way to keep harvester ants away from your home is by placing sticky tape around windowsills or entryways; this trap won’t kill them but will make it difficult for them to cross into your home.
10. Little Black Ants
You might find many ants in Georgia, but one type is particularly pesky: little black ants. They’re so small that they can get into the minor cracks and crevices, and they love to eat any food you leave out.
If you see These types of ants in Georgia around your home or property, here are some natural ways to get rid of them.
Clean up all spills right away. This prevents a food source for the ants and helps keep their population down by removing some members looking for a snack!
Put out traps with borax or sugar water- both ingredients attract the ants and kill them once they’re inside the web.
The best way to get rid of ants for good is to call an exterminator and have them come out and spray your house or yard.
11. Sugar Ants
The most common types of ants in Georgia are sugar ants. These ants usually enter homes through a gap in the foundation, and they don’t produce any stinging or biting. They feed on sweets and other types of foods that have sugars.
Therefore, it is best to keep any food covered when not consumed and limit the amount on your countertops.
In addition, these ants can also be attracted by sweet-smelling perfumes and colognes, so refrain from wearing them inside your home.
These ants will often go unnoticed as they do not bite and do not leave behind pheromones that indicate their presence.
Sugar ants are typically black but may come in colors like yellow, red, brown, orange, and light green. Some people think you should use dish soap to get rid of these ants because they won’t survive without the sugary foods that humans eat.
However, this isn’t true. Sugar ants are considered omnivores, meaning they will eat anything given to them, including meat, fruits, and vegetables.
12. Acrobat Ants
One type of ant you’ll find all around Georgia is the acrobat ant. Acrobat ants get their name from their ability to walk on water and climb up plant stems.
Acrobat ants are tiny and black and can be found throughout the state, but they’re most common in Augusta, Macon, Columbus, and Atlanta.
The best way to prevent an infestation is to keep your home clean and dry.
Check with a pest control professional if you have any questions about how to get rid of them or if you think you might have an infestation in your home.
These types of ants in Georgia may live near plants and trees, so it’s important to trim back leaves and branches from these items regularly.
Make sure you aren’t allowing leaves or other items like stones, mulch, trash cans, potting soil, bird feeders, etc., from building up near your house because these items can attract acrobat ants and other types of pests.
13. Field Ants
Field ants are the most common type of ants you’ll find in Georgia. They’re also one of the most accessible types to get rid of since they don’t build nests and will scatter when disturbed.
Field ants thrive on sweet, sugary foods, so try leaving out foods like honey, jam, or soda overnight.
Field ants are black with a yellowish abdomen. One of their defining characteristics is that they have six legs instead of four like other types of ants.
Unlike different kinds of ants, field ants do not build nests and live mostly underground.
These types of ants in Georgia prefer moist conditions near the ground but can be found in open areas such as grassy fields.
Field ants are tiny and black, but their distinguishing characteristic is that they have six legs instead of four like other ants. The color of their bodies ranges from brown to black, with a yellowish abdomen.
Their size varies from 1/8 inch to 1/2 inch long, and they have a flattened body form. The life cycle for these ants starts as an egg laid by an adult female, which hatches into a larva.
Larvae feed on fungus, bacteria, dead insects, earthworms, and spiders until it becomes pupae. The pupa develops wings and eventually emerges as an adult from the cocoon.
14. Leafcutter Ants
Leafcutter ants are the most common type of ants found in Georgia, and they can be identified by their large heads and dark brown or black color.
The name comes from the fact that they use leaves as a food source: cutting out pieces with their mandibles and carrying them back to their colony.
Leafcutter ants are particularly noticeable because they also emit a distinct odor when disturbed, which smells like oranges.
Leafcutter ants are not considered harmful, but if you do want to get rid of them, it is best to call an exterminator because there is no easy way for homeowners to do this themselves.
These types of ants in Georgia will often enter homes, but more than anything else, they’re just annoying pests you don’t want around your house.
If you’re worried about them invading your home, place some cayenne pepper near doorways to keep them away.
If leafcutters find their way inside, then one thing to do is clean up any crumbs or spills on floors, so they have fewer food options available; if standing water sources are nearby, then make sure to empty these regularly too.
Conclusion
You may have encountered a few ants while wandering around your home. Ants can be found worldwide, but each species is adapted to different climates and environments.
We are fortunate enough to have many types of ants in Georgia for you and your family to enjoy.
But if you find that some ants are becoming too much for you or your family to handle, then it’s time to exterminate them!
We hope this list helps you identify the ant you’re looking at and how best to get rid of them if necessary. It will also help you ensure that these bugs are manageable for you in the future.
