Odorous house ants are indeed a terrible nuisance as their colony size can become huge and Cascade Pest Control has first-hand knowledge that odorous ants are prevalent in the homes in the Boise, Eagle and Meridian Idaho area.
Odorous Ants – what’s with the name?
Odorous house ants have an unfortunate name. Their curious name comes from the fact that when the ant is squished, they emit a “rancid coconut” smell, hence the name, “Odorous” house ant.
On a sweeter note, odorous house ants are also commonly referred to as ‘sugar ants’ because of their intense attraction to sugary foods – foods that can be found in your kitchen pantry!
Odorous (Sugar) Ants in the Boise Region
Cascade Pest Control, as well as other pest control companies, receive hundreds, if not thousands, of calls from homeowners each year for odorous house ants in the greater Boise area. These ants are fairly tiny, black and are often found moving along a trail, with other worker-ants trailing along with them.
Odorous house ants can especially plague your Boise kitchen and bathroom, however are often found in other rooms of a home as well.
Odorous House Ants – Indoors AND Outdoors
What’s not completely understood is that odorous house ants—besides finding something to eat in your kitchen and other inside rooms of your house—mostly forage for their food outdoors in the warmer months within the Boise, Eagle, Meridian regions.
Typically, they forage around an infested home, often locating aphids on trees and bushes which they “tend.” The odorous (sugar) ants protect the aphids while “milking” them for “honey due”—a sugary substance that they produce in their process of ingesting plant ‘sap.’ Odorous house ants also eat other insects.
Our homes are especially attractive to them because they are heated. They prefer to nest where there is a source of warmth. In the wild it might be under an exposed rock that gets heated by the sun for much of the year. In Boise residential neighborhoods, it is our homes, and in Boise area commercial buildings that also attract them.
Expert Ant Control Services
Cascade Pest Control has 47 years of ant pest control expertise. Cascade has successfully addressed odorous house ant problems and prevented future infestations in thousands of homes over the years. If you are in the Boise, Eagle, Meridian region and have an ant infestation, call us today at 208-693-5228
