Flying ants, those irksome insects you’d likely prefer to forget even exist, have an obnoxious way of refusing to be ignored. One minute, your property is an ant-free Eden. The next, winged terrors are emerging from every crevice to remind you whose domain it really is.
But before you panic, take a breath—apocalyptic as a flying ant invasion may appear, it’s not the end of the world, and understanding the antagonist is half the battle. With some straight facts and practical extermination guidance, we’ll get you swatting those flying ants down to size in no time.
What exactly are flying ants?
Let’s start by addressing the elephant insect in the room—just what are these airborne home invaders? Despite their over-the-top antics of swarming en masse, flying ants are technically just young queen ants, and male drone ants …but all dressed up with a flashy pair of wings.
At certain times of the year (typically in July), mature ant colonies go into reproductive mode. Young queen ants with wings, and male drone ants, take part in a mating ritual known as a nuptial flight.
Once the female is fertilised, she will tear off her wings and find a safe place to start her colony. Her mating partner will not join her in the colony as his lifespan is very short.
Once she’s found a nice safe burrow, the fertilised queen will start laying eggs. These eggs will hatch into female worker ants. These workers will forage for food and maintain the nest.
The winged ants you’re seeing traipsing around inside your home are essentially lost ants that managed to wander in through gaps and crevices while the rest of their friends stay outside.
While terrifying to many in their flying numbers, these intruders mostly don’t bite, sting or devour wooden structures. Their sole mission, after mating, is to locate promising real estate for establishing a new colony.
The UK mostly had black ants (or garden ants). These ants don’t bite. Red ants also have a nuptial flight. Red ants are more rare, but they have a stinger so watch out for them.
In some ways, flying ants embody that angst-ridden “time to get my life together” phase nearly every early 20-something goes through. Only instead of subjecting friends to monotonous ruminations over cheap alcohol, they opt to swarm all up in your personal space. Rude, but relatable to a degree.
How to identify an ant infestation
As benign as a few feisty flying ants might seem, their presence could potentially signify far more nefarious insect developments afoot. Think of flying ants as a precursor to an entire ant colony.
Early warning signs
The giveaways of a full-blown ant infestation festering within your space are usually discrete at first. Mysterious trails of determined singles marching into that cabinet gap you swear wasn’t there before, or concentrated mound-like dirt piles accumulating around suspected entry points.
Full-scale infestation
If those early-warning signs go unchecked, it won’t be long before outright Formicid anarchy descends. Kitchen worktops swarming with ants quickly taking over any food left out. Lines of ants marching up and down your bin, or in and out of a plant pot.
Eliminating ants and their colonies
Once you’ve got a bead on which ant faction you’re contending with, it’s time to strategise deliberate extermination protocols. Anything less than a full-on assault against these six-legged insurgents is simply delaying the inevitable.
Seal up gaps
If we’re talking straight-up flying ant swarms, your offensive options are refreshingly straightforward. Seal every last crack and crevice those airborne scouts could’ve swooped through. For most well constructed buildings, it just means closing the windows and the doors. For older buildings it might mean taking out the calking gun.
DIY
Find the exact location of their nest, then create a detailed attack plan. You can put toxic ant baits near the entrance to eliminate them from the inside. They will bring the bait back to the queen and once she’s consumed it, she’ll cease to exist and so will her entire colony.
Please note, toxic baits will not work on flying ants since flying ants are not in search of food. Baits only work on established ant colonies.
The best chemical to use in baits is borax, or some other boric acid based solution. You should follow the safety instructions when using chemicals of any kind. Always ensure that animals and children will not have access to the baits.
Professional help
For truly rooted infestations, you may need to enlist the big guns: pest control specialists wielding industrial-grade equipment and treatments to secure complete insect eviction. Merlin Environmental are a top choice for ant issues in businesses, since we have the experience in discreet, guaranteed, high impact service, protecting your business reputation. Get in touch.
No matter which ant eradication route you take, a measured combination of environmental modification (sealing gaps), sanitation enforcement (cleaning up food sources), pesticide application and potentially even strategic demolition to uproot established colonies is key.
Preventing future ant invasions
Congratulations, you’ve successfully repelled the latest wave of property-invading arthropod antagonists through targeted ant-pocalypse. The formic acid stench of insect defeat hangs crisp in the air.
But like any self-respecting exterminator will warn, that’s merely a temporary victory. The real battle lies in convincing those unstoppable insect hordes that your property is permanently, and determinedly off-limits to future colonisation efforts. Achieve this by sealing up even tiny cracks and crevices, as ants are fully capable of infiltrating. This could mean you need to replace dilapidated weather stripping under doors.
On the interior front, immaculate sanitation and food source denial is non-negotiable moving forward. Search and remove all accessible leftover foods that are still attracting more ants.
Perfect that vacuuming regimen to banish every last crumb or sticky residue that would restart the temptation cycle anew because ants are enduring opportunists. Leave even one fruitcake fragment behind and you’ll rue the day.
Finally, remain observant for early ant recon activity. That odd scattering of dirt or those coincidental entry crevices reemerging can be an isolated ant scouting new frontiers for the next campaign of world domination.
Summing it up: up and away
Encountering flying ants is nobody’s idea of a pleasant surprise. But by understanding what motivates their temporary winged arrival, identifying potential infestation sources early and using ruthlessly targeted eradication tactics, you can swiftly neutralise these obsessively determined home invaders.
Does your property have an ant infestation that requires professional assistance? Merlin Environmental provides comprehensive commercial pest control solutions across the UK and Republic of Ireland. Get in touch for a free, no-obligation quote today.
