Carpenter Ants

Carpenter ants share several similarities with termites: they chew wood, swarm, have a queen that controls the colony and lives for many years, and require moisture in the wood they inhabit. However, unlike termites, carpenter ants do not eat wood. Instead, they excavate it to create their nests.

Carpenter ants are distinguishable by their pinched waist and single node (a node is the segment connecting their thorax and abdomen; some ants have two nodes). They are among the largest ant species, with workers measuring about half an inch in length.

These ants typically swarm during the spring and summer months. They mate while in flight, after which the male dies. Worker ants are nocturnal and can forage up to 100 yards from their nests, often active between 10 PM and 2 AM.

Carpenter ants are particularly attracted to wood with high moisture content. In residential settings, this is often due to factors such as leaking gutters, faulty plumbing, poor ventilation, condensation, or wood that comes into direct contact with soil. As they excavate wood to build