You see ants in the driveway or patio, ant hills coming out of the grass, and even some ants who have made their way into your homes going towards your pantry on warm months. People often do not worry about seeing ants in homes during summer, but it can be a severe problem if you spot ants in your home during the winter season.
Ants are cold-blooded or exothermic insects, which means they cannot produce their own body warmth. In winters, ants must find a warm place to take shelter–depending upon the species, they have different actions to get through the winter.
Although home remedies may work in certain cases, ensure to contact professional pest control services.
Can ants survive in winter?
No, ants cannot survive in the lower temperature of the winter season. However, they have different survival methods to survive through the winter.
Most common is that the ants will gather together deep in the underground colony, far away from the cold. Ants, like wood ants, create large mounds of dirt over their territory. These mounds absorb heat from the sun that keeps the region warm below it.
As the temperature falls, some ants divide into smaller territories with their own queens. These colonies stay split and loosely connected with the original and will merge again in the spring. Splitting the colonies improves overall survival odds if something goes wrong, exposing the colonies to extreme cold.
Most ants gather together during winter and enter into a state known as diapause. This is also known as hibernation, but diapause is a temporary dormancy, whereas hibernation slows the metabolic process.
Is it normal to spot ants in winter?
Having ants in winter is not expected as they should be inside their colonies under the ground during the cold months. Spotting ants in your home during winter could mean an ominous sign which leads to serious questions.
Where are the ants coming from?
If you see ants in your home during winter, it means the group of ants is trying to survive the cold using your home as shelter. Your home provides the necessary warmth to them, as well as water and food sources.
Carpenter ants do the same thing. They nest in wood, but they can chew tunnels in the beams and take shelter in the spring. Therefore it is necessary to seek help from pest control services if you see ants during winter.
