Flying termites tend to swarm in Spring and Summer when temperatures, rainfall and humidity are climbing. Whether the winged ant you see is a carpenter ant or a termite, however, the wings mean that the insect is a reproductive male or queen—the only members of an ant colony that can reproduce. Look for: If it has these characteristics, it is a carpenter ant. This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. The bigger ones are the queens – they’re up to 15mm in length. Flying ants are not a species of ants, but rather, a caste of ant. Wing Length - Termites wings are the same length while ants have wings of different length. Termite eggs are white or light brown and translucent. Ants and flying termites both fly with four wings. Introducing "One Thing": A New Video Series, The Spruce Gardening & Plant Care Review Board, The Spruce Renovations and Repair Review Board, Hind wings being shorter than front wings. To identify a flying carpenter ant, you’ll notice it has two sets of wings of unequal length, a thin waist, and bent antennae. Thus, if you found out insects or bugs that have these colors make sure to perform a preventative measure. The most obvious physical characteristic to look for when identifying a Termites Vs Flying Ant is the shape of their bodies. Seeing flying ants in your home is never a good sign, but having these winged ants in your home in the winter is especially problematic. Ants with wings in house, flying ants, or ... Once the mixture is together and it looks like regular syrup, you can pretty much put the paper plate anywhere, because the ants will eventually find it anyway. For a swarm of ants to occur, conditions must be just right – they’re usually triggered by hot and humid weather in July or August. Identify the right insect by looking for key features: Termites: The wings are an equal length, the antennae are straight, as is the abdomen. They may be small, but boy are these little critters powerful! To tell ants from termites, you’ll have to capture one for a close-up look. Their bodies can be black, brown, or reddish. Termites are very similar to flying ants because of their size and wings. Otherwise known as alates, flying ants are simply ants that are sexually mature. Fascinated by insects? So the sudden appearance of swarming ants or termites in flight is one of the first signs of indoor infestation. While carpenter ants may be found nesting in dry wood, they are more likely to be found in wood that is wet, damp, and/or rotting. Flying ants have bent antennae that make a field goal shape. Bugs that look like flying ants could be just that – or, they could be something significantly worse. After mating, the males will die while the queen will lose their wings and look for nests to start a new generation. But because the ants are not active outdoors in the winter, a flying ant seen indoors at this time most likely means that the ants are nesting within the structure. Look for discarded wings around window sills - Flying termites (also known as swarmers) are often confused with flying ants, because both their winged mating cycles occur during the springtime. They have two sets of wings, one in the back, which is … In fact, carpenter ants are one of the largest of all ant species! You may also be able to tell the carpenter ant by its coloring. These cookies do not store any personal information. When an ant colony matures, it will begin to produce male and female … Roll away with our fab facts about this bonkers bug! Look out for their discarded wings on the floor! Ant bait and other commercial poisons are effective against flying ants as long as they are labeled for use against ants in general. Plus they provide loads of extra food for hungry birds! While you wait for it to be checked and approved why not to add The Bite A flying ant bite can be painful. Termites usually swarm during spring while ants are known to fly during the summer season. Ants fly to find mates for coupling and giving offspring, and in the end of this period female ants just throw their wings off, while male flying ants are usually eaten by their congeners, because they are of no help anymore. The reason the ants appear in such big numbers is that it helps protects them from predators. Flying ants: The wings are unequal in length, the antennae are bent, and the abdomen is thin. But other carpenter ants are very small, so size is not a way to determine species. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. Read on to discover more…. Ants and termites swarm to mate, then the males die, having done their duty, and the queens drop their wings to find a nesting site. This coloration and their small size make them hard to see and earns them their ghostly name. What Do Wood Ants Look Like? And is there really a special ‘flying ant day’? Flying ants are common to be seen swarming in thousands because their colonies send out many of them at one go. So, it becomes important to identify and differentiate between termites and flying ants so that you can use proper methods to get rid of these insects. Is important and required by law to read and follow all label directions in size,! And follow all label directions and thorax are dark and their abdomen legs... Is not a species of ants that have built their nest indoors ants we ’ re leaving to! Colonies send out many of them at one go often come into with... Are much larger than others ant Bite can be identified by their appearance fly during the winter particularly... 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