Ants | Largest and Smallest | Fun Fact Friday

Tomorrow we'll see if the groundhog sees his shadow.  Then, we'll know whether we're in for more winter weather or mild spring like rain!  Or something like that anyways. The number of people calling about ants is on the increase as we get closer to Spring.

Because ants are known as Spring pest because the rains of Spring (also Summer, Autumn and Winter too here in the northwest) can drive some species of ants indoors.  Other species of ants come inside for reasons outside of the weather.  But considering  it's Fun Fact Friday, we're not going to get into the details of why ants come indoors.  We're going to talk about two specific ants.  The very largest species of ant and the very smallest species of ant (according the the Encyclopedia Smithsonian).

The smallest known species of ant is the Sri Lankan Ant.  It is 1/30 of one inch in length.

The largest known species of ant is the Driver Ant of Africa.  The worker reaches the length of 1 and 1/3 inches.

So unless you're travelling to Sri Lanka and Africa, you won't see the largest or the smallest species of ants.  You get the average every day American varieties including carpenter ants, ghost ants (pretty tiny), odorous house ants, sugar ants, picnic ants, etc.

Here is a video by National Geographic on fire ants in the south.

If you're having a problem with ants, give us at Peak Pest Management a call.  We'll be happy to help you out!

Micah Wood
Peak Pest Management LLC
www.peak-pest-management.com
micah@peak-pest-management.com
Portland 503-998-4322
Vancouver 360-607-1933
Seattle 206-790-8285

Ants| You Are What You Eat| Fun Fact Friday

Ants are an interesting pest. Are they unpleasant in a home?  Of course they are!  They're creepy-crawly-tickly-itchy-stinky creatures, and depending on species, they can cause structural damage.  I still think it's a good idea to take care of an ant infestation, even though I find them interesting.

Something I recently read at http://www.biokids.umich.edu was about how ants position in the colony is determined by how much and what they are fed in their infant stages.  Food source and amount determines not only the size of an ant but the caste within the society.  So a queen ant, or the workers (depending on the age of the colony) will feed the various larva different foods and in different amounts to raise more workers, soldiers, males, queens, etc depending on the needs of the colony.

Within an ant colony, there are many different types of ants.  All of the ants are (generally speaking)the same species, but they look different, their purpose to the colony can be determined based on what they look like. An ant with a larger head and jaw is likely a protector/soldier of the nest and may also be a forager.  Smaller ants are likely to be in-nest workers, digging and caring for the young.  Ants with wings are reproductive, the smaller winged ants are general male and the larger are female. Before reading about it, I didn't realize that this position is determined as they develop, and is based on quantity and type of food.

Here is a fire ant video by national geographic.  Not exactly on theme, but about ants and pretty interesting.



If you're having a problem with ants, whether they are moisture ants, odorous house ants, carpenter ants, big ants, small ants, or any other pest give us, at Peak Pest Management a call, send us an email or check out our website for more information!

Micah Wood
www.peak-pest-management.com
micah@peak-pest-management.com
Portland 503-998-4322
Vancouver 360-607-1933
Seattle 206-790-8285

Biokids: University of Michigan (2002-2013). Ants, Formicidae. http://www.biokids.umich.edu/critters/Formicidae/

Rats, Bedbugs, Fleas, Bees | A Day in the Life

A Day in The Life of a Pest Control Technician

 

Any given day can hold endless possibilities of the various pests I'll run into on the job.  I'll tell you the truth, I like variety in my day.  If I didn't, this wouldn't be the job for me.  There is nothing mundane or boring about driving out in my pest control truck and saving the day.  Yes, that's right, saving the day.  Not in the same way as a super hero, or law enforcement, doctors, emergency workers and military, but still-- I do save the day.

 

On a relatively busy day I might go out on up to seven or eight calls. Sometimes in pest control I'll have a trend for the day-- like 3-4 of the same sort of job and maybe one or two other pests.  But other times my day is completely varied.  Because typically I might see four or five different pests on a busy day, I'll run through a list of pests that I see regularly.

 

• Rats and mice are a common call. This is the call I most often take early in the morning and late at night. People do not like rodents! Understandably so, because rodents can carry a number of diseases as well as fleas. Rodents can really contaminate a home or business and people are often anxious for a solution when they see one.  Often I will fill my early morning time slots with rodent jobs.
• Bees (well, really mostly wasps and yellow jackets but the call is often for "bees") are kind of a specialty.  Up until I said to a customer "I almost never get stung,"  it had been a really long time since I was last stung.  The day I said that I got stung 6 times.  I'm not really complaining, it's just a hazard of the job-- from time to time stings happen.  When I don't get stung, I can take care of a basic "bee" call pretty fast.  During the summer and early Autumn I can have 3-4 calls in one day-- all for bees and wasps.
• Bedbugs are another call that can come in the middle of the night or early in the morning.  Bedbugs creep people out.  The thought of being bitten while you sleep can cause a person to lose more than a little sleep.  People who call in about bedbugs and end up having a flea infestation are some of the happiest and most relieved customers I have ever met.  Although the number of bedbug cases I see is on a steady rise, I do encounter many people who suspect bedbugs but are relieved to hear it is something else.  Although bedbugs and fleas are very different, both bite and I do see both bedbugs and fleas on a regular basis.
• Fleas and pets go hand in hand.  It makes sense that customers with a flea infestation in the home are often concerned about the health and safety of their pet.  At Peak Pest Management, we are also concerned about the health and safety of the pets and people in the home.  We choose the safest and most effective products available.
• Spiders are one of the pests that make me feel like I'm saving the day.  Spiders are a very real fear for many people and although we do have relatively few poisonous spiders here in the northwest, the ones we do have (namely hobo spiders) can be aggressive.  A happy customer is a customer who no longer has to worry about spiders invading their home.
• Ants and termite calls come in on a regular basis as well.  Ants can be a nuisance, or they can be a structural pest depending on the type of ant.  Carpenter ants and termites (not an ant) are structural pests that cause real and expensive damage when left untreated.  People sometimes confuse carpenter ants, termites and even powder post beetles.  All three cause structural damage and it can be hard for a person to differentiate which pest is causing problems.  A Pest Control Professional, like myself, is trained to recognise the differences in these pests, not just by what they look like, but by other evidence that is left behind by structural pests.

Because I am just talking about "a Day in the Life," I won't go into detail about these pests or list out everything I have ever treated for-- or even everything I've done this week.  Honestly that would probably be pretty long and it would eventually get boring.  Maybe another day I'll write about my experiences with ridiculously smart squirrels and funny and unusual calls.  But for today, there's just a sampling of what I might do in a day-- at this time of year.

 

I'm here, any time, for all of your pest control needs.

 

Micah Wood

Peak Pest Management

www.peak-pest-management.com

micah@peak-pest-management.com

503-998-4322

360-607-1933

206-790-8285

What is Carpenter Ant Flushing? And Other Common Questions.

So, my wife brought to my attention that when I say "There may be some flushing," regarding ant treatments people who do not work in the pest control industry might not understand what I'm talking about.  Flushing refers to a part of the process with some ant products where ants come out of their nest and die.  It isn't a reference to ants using your bathroom or taking up playing poker with cards in your house.  Depending on the product used, flushing can occur with a variety of ants, moisture ants, odorous house ants, sugar ants, carpenter ants, etc.  Flushing sometimes gives the appearance that the problem is temporarily worse.  Flushing is a normal part of the process and a good sign that the treatment is working.

The next obvious question is-- If the ants are dying because of the pest control products and they are outside of the nest where my pet parrot, puppy, kitten etc can get to them and eat them, will my pet get sick?  With the products we use the answer is no.  This is because we use pet safe products.  The products we, at Peak Pest Management, use for Ant treatments are specifically targeted for ants.

What does specifically targeted mean?  Specifically targeted means that the products either are a natural poison to ants because of their biological make up, or the products are developed using the biology of the ant specifically to avoid poisoning animals and people.  Pest control has come a long way over the years- environmentally friendly pest control companies, like Peak Pest Management, are always learning and developing.  Continued learning is a crucial part of maintaining the highest quality pest control service.

At Peak Pest Management there is a desire to know the most current pest control issues.  We also make the effort to educate ourselves in the most current and most effective and safest products available.  On top of that we read research done by experts within the industry.