BLACK GARDEN ANTS
The Black Garden Ant (lasius niger) also known as the common Black Ant, is a formicine Ant, the type species of the sub genus lasuis, found all over Europe, America, Asia and Austrailia. It is monogymous meaning colonies have a single Queen. Black Ant colonies can reachin size up to around 40,000 workers but around 4-7000 is average. A Queen can live up to 15 years.
Ants mate up in the air (flying ants) which include males and virgin queen females. The mating usually occurs around June to September. Flights can contain thousands of winged males and females.
Once the Queens have mated they will land and discard these wings and begin to find a suitable place to dig a tunnel. The males only generally live a day or two after mating. Once the queen has built the tunnel she retreats to begin to lay her eggs. The eggs hatch after 8-10 weeks and the larvae begin to mature. A Queen Ant will not eat but relies on her wing muscles to be broken down and digested.
Once after several moults and has spun a cocoon the ant begins the process of metamorphosis and the workers emerge from the cocoon. The workers then care for the queen and come to ground to forage for food.
As a pest ants can be a problem for gardeners as they will eat aphid, honeydew, fruits and other invertebrates. They can also contaminate food which can be a problem for Residential and Commercial businesses alike.
CONTROL
Here at LadyBug Pest Control we can provide a customised treatment to fit your needs. We will work with you rid the area of existing pests and protect you against further infestation. It includes targeted bait locations, liquid and granular perimeter treatments that provide fast knock down against Ants.