Family Structure
- Queens: As many as 200 per Colony
- Workers: One colony can have as many as one to two thousand
- Because of the density of their nests, it looks like they live in huge colonies
- Live well with other neighboring insect colonies
- Usually produce new reproductive individuals twice a year; however, laboratory colonies have produced reproductives whenever they wanted.
Diet
- Feed: Pretty much everything – sugars, baked goods, fruits, greases, other insects – even shoe polish.
Characteristics
- Pests will chew holes in anything made of rayon, silk or rubber.
- Colonies multiply by sending a team of queens, workers, eggs, larvae and pupae to another nest to begin a new colony
- Budding is why Pharaoh ants are so invasive. One seed colony can take over a large office block in less than six months.
- Control of these pests is difficult because the multiple colonies can separate into smaller colonies to survive a baiting program; then they repopulate after the bait is gone.
- Major hazard in hospitals: because they are so small, they can invade wounds, drip lines, and instruments, leading to the spread of infection
Pharaoh ants are a very critical problem in hospitals, rest homes, apartment dwellings, hotels, grocery stores, food establishments and other buildings.
Contact Us
Contact us for help with a problem with Pharaoh Ants. You may also call either our Central Coast office or our Ventura County office.
