Billions of Ants, Zero Photos
If I'd been a better journalist I would have not resorted to using the stock photo image of ants you see here. Rather, I would have photographed the actual scene I found beneath my old metal flour bin when I lifted it to wipe the counter after yet another ant invasion.
What I saw beneath the canister defied comprehension: a huge, undulating ant swarm. These are the ants I've always known as simply piss ants, named for the odor excreted when squished.
Let me pause here to say that I've never been good about judging crowd numbers - whether a demonstration, concert, Freedom Festival or, yes, an insect infestation. But conservatively, I'd estimate about two billion ants, give or take a million.
Ants were just one part of the wonder. Pale opaque things about the size of grains of rice - eggs or larvae - thousands of them were there, too. Finally, in the center of it all - a man-thumb-sized hunk of something, completely slathered in ants. Still don't know what that was. Food? An ant condo? I have no idea.
The whole thing freaked me out.
That's why I never snapped that picture, which I feel rotten about now, because I like to share these big life moments with you. Besides, I'd like to look at it again, just to confirm what I saw.
No, I was too busy screaming - too caught up the realization that when I hoisted the bin into the air I'd suddenly exposed the ants, which suddenly stampeded for cover.
All. Over. My. Kitchen.
That's why I didn't take the time to find my CoolPix digital camera, turn it on, push the "Scene" button, select the "close-up" feature and then unclick flash - natural light is so much nicer - for just the right image. I was too caught up in flapping my hands, jumping in place and yelling help me help me help me to Bruce who stood, mouth agape at the Discovery Channel-worthy sight upon our Corian countertop.
Not that the ants were a total surprise. For the last month we'd started each day - even before our first cup of coffee - with an ant slaughter. We'd use hot, wet cloths to wipe away the ants. We don't like chemical sprays, so we strategically placed Ant-Be-Gone bait canisters along the window sill, outside the front door, beneath toe kicks, and, yes, behind the very flour canister that I'd move to wipe ants each morning.
Moved, but never lifted.
So maybe I'm not the best house-keeper.
You probably cannot see the extremely tiny opening at the right edge of my canister in the photo, above. But trust me, it's there, a minuscule white archway under which those first ants marched and sought shelter. And invited others, and formed an ant city, and enjoyed ant sex, and produced ant infants. And they created a freaking ant universe practically right under my nose in my very kitchen.
Doni: Oh my gosh, Bruce, where do you think those ants are coming from?
Bruce: I saw a trail coming from the pond that led to the house.
Doni: Let's put Ant-Be-Gone by the pond.
Bruce: OK.
Now I'm wishing I'd paid more attention to a conversation I had with a woman I met at the McConnell Foundation a while back where Kelly and I were the featured speakers at a Jack Benny Club luncheon. The woman was the grown daughter of one of the JB members, and she happened to be an entomologist. Ants were her specialty. Fascinating.
Kelly and I had so many ant questions and this woman had ant answers. We learned that some ants are attracted to grease, others to protein - meat, fish, etc. - and others to sugar.
I don't know what our Igo ants were after, but my guess it was a cool spot to escape the 108+ temperatures.
I do know I will buy a new flour canister, one with a tight gasket.
And maybe I should think about a housekeeper.
Ants photos courtesy of Jusben from MorgueFile.com.
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Terro. It's an ant killer. It works - for sweet eating ants.
Totally gross, I feel for you. This year was horrible for ants up here in Lewiston, too.
Drives my hubby nuts, but my favorite thing for the kitchen is Pam (or whatever oil spray you use). I spritz it on surfaces where the ants is coming and lightly wipe most of it off. The ants can't stand to cross the slight tackiness that's left. (And the Pam kills them dead if you spray it on them - I finish them off with a paper towel, of course - you don't want them to be in pain - silly, but that's me).
I also spray the outer perimeter of the cat food bowl, the container of our cat food, etc. It's not perfect, but I can't stand spray ant poison in the house and washing the counters with soapy water doesn't seem to deter them all that long. Especially when you're living with three guys who can't seem to realize that a knife with jam residue left on the counter is an open invitation to all those ants.
Doni,
I'm sorry---because we have ants too, but you have me laughing so hard I almost fell out of my chair. You are a great and entertaining writer. Can't wait to see what happens to you next--better than any T.V. soap opera.
Good Luck with your ants. Sandy Tincher
Okay, let me share this low-tech intervention that has worked for me...and my 100 year old farmhouse is indeed vulnerable to ant incursions. Your invasion sounds particularly horrific and in need of intervention, however, so here goes...find a large container of powdered boric acid. It will be in the pest control section of your local grocery or hardware store. It comes in a pint or quart sized plastic container with a pointy, cone-shaped tip, so one can squeeze the container and puff out a line of the powder. (Maybe get more than one). Find the 'line' of ants, or, if you're really freaked out, as it seems you might be, outline the entire perimeter of your house with a 3-4 inch wide line of boric acid powder. Be sure to concentrate on where Bruce saw them entering your house. You can use the stuff inside, too. It can be vacuumed up after a few days. The idea is to create a line that they must cross, so the ants touch the powder, track it back to where ever they're coming from and eventually take out the whole tribe. Hey, the more enlightened ants will choose another way. I won't go into detail regarding my own bug battles but it will mitigate most all (creeping) insect invasions, and the powder is not harmful to pets or humans in the amounts used to deter insects. Bon soire!
We used good old baking soda, sprinkled it along the edges of the counter tops next to the walls where they invaded the kitchen and they haven't come back.
Sorry, Doni, but glad to hear we're not the only ones out here who suffer with ants. Every year, around spring/summer, when the weather heats up, they swarm in. This year, we got smart and the minute we saw one we put down bait traps (yes, Terro works great, but they all seem to) all over the house! If you only put the traps where you see the ants, they just move elsewhere. They love our dishwasher (yuck!!!!) and the cat's water and food bowls, but have no qualms about hanging out in our downstairs bathroom either. You can bet we don't walk around the house barefoot in the summer! Last year was the worst, they got into my pantry -- good excuse to do a major clean out. Anyway, this year we seem to have been spared, but then, we've never taken the traps up again. We've only replaced them with new ones in mid-summer. Ah, the joys of living in the country...
Thanks for the tips, everyone. (And Judy and Joe, I believe the reason you were spared this summer from the usual ant infestation is the ants found a nice sanctuary down the road at Greenberg Arces.)
Whatever works, Doni!
WOW, did you actually scream when you saw the ants? Ants are cool. A bit of a hastle, but cool. If you a water dish outside they will attract to it. If you do not use poison, because of kids or pets. Try using a long pile of Baby powder, they cannot walk through it until it hardens on top from condensation. Indoors it works best. GRITS also works as a poison, blows them up. FRESH MINT also works as a repellant. Have you asked them nicely to leave?
for a quick fix (the boric is great, but...), a light rub of liquid soap seems to keep them out of things (plus it makes your next cleanup so much easier).
I second the boric acid treatment, but be careful as it can be toxic and can damage plants. Also silica gel, which is not toxic but is a drying agent and irritant, does discourage ants. Both of these are used as a barrier to keep ants out of areas of concern. Anything sticky like commercial products 'tanglefoot' or 'stickem special' will also keep ants away. These sticky products are good for coating tree trunks so ants cannot tend aphids in the trees.
As has been stated, spray oils clog ants' breathing pores and will kill them.
You can get good ant info from UC's Integrated Pest Management program:
I want to know more about the Jack Benny Club.
We have purchased every ant bait sold by Home Depot. None worked whatsoever even when they said they would work with the ants that like AND the ants that like sugar.
We googled and then used honey mixed with borax. When the ants visited then ignored the bait we added more honey and then wam bam they came by the hundreds, they saw, they tasted and carried the stuff back to the hive for several days, and then no more ants.
Recipes often recommend combining peanut butter and honey together with the borax in case your ants are going for protein or prefer sugar and you are not sure which. We just tried honey and it worked for our guys. Don't over do the borax, but don't under do it either or your ants will be your friends forever.
Here's a similar recipe
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20080427100652AAeD7GE
I should have said boric acid. 20 mule team borax is still in the back of my mind.
http://www.20muleteamlaundry.com/
Doni, have you tried calling Clark? We had to give up the ant chase --nothing seemed to work, and I hate having to clean up hoards of ants. Clark also gets mice and rats. Our cat is no good at getting mice -- oh, yes, he is good at bringing them in! Good luck!
OMG - I am rolling on the floor laughing. Sorry, Doni, I just got this visual. . . Your house is beautiful and clean, so did it ever occur to you that they came to your kitchen because you are the "cook extraordinaire"? Who wouldn't want to live in your kitchen? I know I would, but I would never bring a million or so relatives. Promise.
Yep, boric acid, baking soda are two of the best things. My grandma lined the window sills with them like it was some kind of barrier, battle line that suggested they better not cross or else! NEVER put the ant baits in the windows. Non-scientific research (experiencing the same event time-and-time again) proved that to me. It attracts them and they come and they feast. A few leave, but the rest stay and have a good time. Ant stakes around the outside of the house seemed to work sometimes (maybe we don't have ants this year because they moved to your neck o' the woods).
I hate ants more than anything when they swarm. They nest in "See 'n Say" toys, toasters; anything with little holes. You think there are only a few, then kablam, millions, yes millions. NO pictures needed, Doni. Except to prove to Phil I'm not the only one who sees them.
But, I found that if they're in the kitchen or bathroom, then they're not in the closet or under a bed or somewhere else horribly worse that you discover at a very inconvenient time...like when you're asleep and wake up to them all over you! YUK!
You can make a very cheap and harmless to people of pets ant killer. 1 Tab;lespoon icing sugar, 1 tablespoon borax. mix togeather and put down near the infested spot.
yes, get some of Jackie's Boric Acid. The label says it is for roaches and can be safely used in cabinets and crevices of your kitchen, however you do not want it somewhere where your dog can lap it up. A tidier method for ants I learned from Dunsmuir old timers, was to make a trap with the stuff. fill a small canning jar with cotton balls. Make up some sugar syrup like for hummingbirds, add a teaspoon of the boric acid powder and pour over the cotton balls. Set the trap somewhere near where you have seen them (under sink cabinet, just outside window, etc) It takes a day or two to work, but very effective. Seems to work on sugar bowl, grease spot and just plain thirsty ants equally as well.
Piss ants are only in my bedroom. Newly carpeted, newly bought house. Nice face lift! It is a mobile home with insulation under house. Lots of dirt below and big crawl space. They only want to be in the bedroom. Lots of cat food and other attractions in the other rooms but no ants. It smells like an old person's bottom.
Sorry, but that is how the young man identified them over the telephone at the local hardware store. A lady died in the house one and one half years ago and the heir slapped on new paint and new wall to wall carpeting. I have icky thoughts now about the face lift made and how long she might have been in the bedroom. Sorry! Yet, this is where they keep coming in. I bought liquid boric acid trays once they completely invaded the bedroom. We slept in the living room for five days and indeed they seemed to have left. Today, they are back.
Don't know what they want. They are about five different sizes from little ones to one quarter inch. I like insects but I must do something. Help!
p/s. I am in Nevada County, California ..... Lu
Where are all Ant afficionados?
this morning when i woke up i my dad millions of ants every where so we had to go to the store and get 65 dollors of ant poison