Lasius interjectus/Lasius claviger
In a nice change of rate , citronella ( or yellow ) ants have no pastime in human food .
So that mean they will never rag me , ripe ? Unfortunately , the answer is no .
Citronella ant swarm sharply in the fall ( and often throughout the year ) , and these cloud can make their way inside .
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They stupefy no threat , but they often frighten homeowners who fear they are termites .
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We at Gardener ’s Path will excuse the remainder between citronella ants and white ant and excuse what to do when these irritate insects invade your home base .
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What You Will Learn
Identification
As their name suggests , citronellas are easy identified by thelemon verbenaor citronella smell they give off when they are stressed or you beat out them .
They are also known as larger yellow ants ( due to their coloration ) and are about 1/8 ” long . Their scientific name isLasius interjectus(formerlyAcanthomyops interjectus ) .
The ably named pocket-size white-livered ants ( Lasius claviger ) calculate just like the large one except that they are modest .
How to Distinguish Citronella Ants from Termites
At first glimpse , the swarming citronella ants that aviate to pair look alarmingly like termites . They can even be reddish - brown in colour .
At this leg , they are about 1/4 inch long – just the size of white ant .
Another reason they are often mistaken for termite is their inclination to push up grease as they migrate through the ground in lawn or garden .
The smell is a key way to discover them from termites .
Also they have characteristic antennae with 12 segment . The first segment just hand the caput .
And citronellas have an unusual cluster of circular hair around their anus .
Distribution and Biology
Both character are establish throughout the continental US , and the turgid yellow ant is exceptionally abundant on the East Coast .
Citronellas live underground and act like little farmers . They tendaphidsandmealybugsthat exist on plant roots .
What do they get out of this ? These insects secrete sugar , which is promise honeydew , and the ant run on this .
luckily , citronellas have no pursuit in human food .
Colonies
Underground colonies can be in the heart of your lawn or garden . Or they may be in pastures , fallow fields , or exposed woods . rot log provide another type of place for these insufferable insects .
Sometimes the colony are very close to construction and can be next to foundations and under concrete slabs .
Soil around the entrance to the dependency can give you an indication of their whereabouts .
Swarming Behavior
Normally you would not note these villainous insect unless swarm of them look in your home !
They typically pour in the summer , but they have been detect in homes in former spring and former fall – possibly because the soil is warm by het structures .
Once you have identified that these swarms are not termite , you could relax and mete out with the job at hand .
Fortunately , the swarming citronella settlement will not touch your solid food , damage your sign of the zodiac , or endeavor to reproduce deep down .
The swarms typically only last for 3 - 4 day .
How to Manage a Swarm
Your good wager is to vacuum them up . It is not worth handle them with insecticide .
And to complicate things , citronellas do not respond to lure .
However , if you continue to get horde , your patience will in all likelihood be exhausted .
One pick is to caulk their entry points to the house to keep them out .
Another is to hunt down the dependency and believe eradicate it .
Doing so would require powerful insecticides , and your best bet at this point is to bring in a professional terminator .
Peaceful Ants That Swarm in Great Numbers
Citronella ants normally keep to themselves tending aphid and mealybugs on plant life beginning .
However , they swarm in large numbers throughout the year . During this process , they oft recruit houses where they are often misguided for white ant .
There are a number of way to pick out citronella ants from termites , and often you could solve the trouble by vacuum-clean them up .
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About
Helga George , Ph.D.
