A sudden emergence of winged insects signals that a mature ant colony is ready to reproduce, prompting a search for the nest’s location. These “flying ants” are the reproductive members of a colony, known as alates, including both virgin queens and males. Their appearance indicates that the source colony is nearby and has reached a population size allowing it to invest resources in creating new founders. Locating the established nest is the most direct way to address the source of the swarm.
The Purpose of Flying Ants
The synchronized mass departure of alates is called the nuptial flight, which serves as the species’ primary method of reproduction and dispersal. This flight is triggered by specific environmental conditions, typically warm and humid weather following a rainfall. The goal is for queens to mate with males from other colonies to promote genetic diversity. The presence of these winged individuals proves that a large, mature colony has been successfully operating beneath the surface.
Differentiating Flying Ants from Termites
The appearance of any winged insect swarm requires distinguishing flying ants from termite swarmers, as their nesting habits and potential damage differ. The most immediate visual difference is the insect’s body structure. A flying ant possesses a narrow, pinched waist between the thorax and abdomen, while termite swarmers have a broad, uniform waist that makes their body appear cylindrical. Ants also have antennae with a noticeable bend or elbow, while termite antennae are straight and bead-like. Finally, flying ants have two pairs of wings where the front pair is longer than the hind pair, but termites have four wings of equal length.
Primary Nest Locations
The location of the established ant colony that produces the swarm depends on the species, but mature nests generally fall into three categories: soil, wood, or structural voids. Many common species, such as pavement ants, create nests in soil beneath objects that provide thermal mass and protection. These subterranean nests are often found under sidewalks, patio stones, landscape timbers, or concrete slabs near a foundation. They can be identified by the small volcano-shaped piles of excavated soil outside the entrance.
Carpenter ant colonies excavate galleries inside wood to create nesting sites but do not consume the wood itself. Their established nests are frequently found in moisture-damaged wood, such as rotting tree stumps, firewood piles, or structural timbers near a constant water source, like leaky plumbing or roof defects. When a nest is located inside a home, it is often concealed within wall voids, insulation, or near sources of heat and moisture. Finding alates emerging indoors suggests the source colony is either within the structure or very close to the foundation.
Starting a New Colony
Once a virgin queen has successfully mated during the nuptial flight, she sheds her wings and begins searching for a suitable place to start a founding nest. This process is called dealation, where the queen chews off her own wings, often leaving discarded wings scattered on the ground. She then seeks a small, sheltered, and damp location where she can remain undisturbed to lay her first batch of eggs.
Ideal founding sites include:
- Crevices in concrete
- Small cracks in the soil
- Under rocks or logs
- Within rotting tree bark
Once a site is chosen, the queen seals herself inside a small chamber and relies solely on stored energy, including the breakdown of her wing muscles, to sustain herself and her first brood. This initial, solitary stage is distinct from the established colony location, representing the beginning of a future colony rather than the source of the current swarm.