Ants are generally harmless insects, and while they sometimes contaminate food and bite people, they are more of a nuisance than anything else. They aren’t even a major health risk, in contrast to many other pests. However, there are many different species of ants, and one you want to watch out for at your home is carpenter ants.
Carpenter ants are large, black insects that destroy wood. While they don’t consume the wood like termites do, carpenter ants chew through the wood to create tunnels for their nests. While this can be useful for forest decomposition in the wild, it is a problem when they decide to create tunnels in your home or building instead. To avoid extensive property damage, you need to call a pest control professional at the first sign of a carpenter ant infestation. Here are a few ways to spot one:
- Piles of Sawdust– When carpenter ants burrow into the wood, they push out piles of frass, or wood shavings that pile up near the openings of their nests. You may notice these piles near windows, baseboards, or anywhere else that may have damp wood.
- Rustling Noises– If you hear strange rustling noises inside your walls, it may be a carpenter ant infestation at work. It is easiest to hear these noises at night when everything else is quieter, but the larger the colony is, the easier it will be to hear them causing structural damage.
- Discarded Wings– Female carpenter ants shed their wings after mating, so if you find small insect wings in your home, it may be a sign you have a carpenter ant infestation that is going to become worse.