Ants a problem
in Canberra?

While white-footed house ants don’t cause structural damage, they are still considered a troublesome pest due to their prolific population growth.

These ants eat a variety of foods but are especially attracted to sweet substances.

Colour

Dark brownish black with yellow-white feet.

Size

Adults grow from 2.5 to 3 millimetres long, with with three defined body sections: the head, a segmented thorax & abdomen.

Habitat

The white-footed house ant is aptly named, as it is extremely well-adapted to establish its nests inside in roof, floor or wall voids, especially near rooms like the kitchen, where food sources are more easily available. Outside they may live in tree trunks, under plant debris and near or under pavement.

Lifecycle

Almost half of the colony is made up of fertile, winged females who are responsible for the reproduction of up to a million ants in each colony. The brood, including eggs, larvae and pupae are cared for in the nest by the founding queen.

Although native to Australia, black house ants are a nuisance around the home or business due to their sheer numbers and a small nest can very quickly become a large infestation.

These ants eat a variety of foods but are especially attracted to sweet substances.

Colour

Shiny and black.

Size

Adults grow from 1.6 to 3 millimetres long, with three defined body sections: the head, thorax & abdomen.

Habitat

Just like the white-footed house ant, the black house ant is well-adapted to establish itself inside in roof, floor or wall voids, especially near rooms like the kitchen, where food sources are more easily available. Outside they may live in tree trunks, under plant debris and near or under pavement.

Lifecycle

Almost half of the colony is made up of fertile, winged females who are responsible for the reproduction of up to a million ants in each colony. The brood, including eggs, larvae and pupae are cared for in the nest by the founding queen.

When disturbed or threatened, these aggressive ants can cause a painful sting, although they don’t usually live indoors.

Colour

Shiny red and/or black.

Size

Adults grow from 8 to 40 millimetres, with large eyes and long, slender mandibles (claw-like mouth parts).

Habitat

Bull ants are well-adapted to establish themselves inside in roof, floor or wall voids, especially in moist areas such as the kitchen or bathroom. Outside, they build nests in bushy areas under logs or rocks, but are often found in urban garden areas.

Lifecycle

In each bull ant colony there is one queen who produces all the eggs, a few fertile males and the rest are infertile female workers. It can take several months for a bull ant to grow from an egg to an adult and the queen may live for several years.

Banded sugar ants are nocturnal and like bull ants, rarely live indoors.

When they do venture inside, they have been known to cause damage to furniture and fittings by chewing the wood.

Colour

This species can vary greatly in size and colour. Generally, males are completely black, but females have a black head, orange thorax and orange-banded black abdomen.

Size

Adults grow from 2.5 to 15 millimetres, with worker ants being smaller and more slender than the soldiers.

Habitat

Banded sugar ants are well-adapted to establish themselves inside in roof, floor or wall voids, especially in moist areas such as the kitchen or bathroom. Outside, they can make their nests in a variety of habitats such as in tree trunks and under roots, rocks and ground cover. They can also build funnel-shaped mounds.

Lifecycle

Nests usually have one queen but have been known to contain several. Queens will mate and form colonies in mid-summer. It can take several months for a banded sugar ant to grow from an egg to an adult and the queen may live for up to 7 years.

Meat ants are endemic to Australia and distributed over at least a third of the continent.

These ants are particularly prolific in coastal and inland regions of southeastern Australia.

Colour

Workers come in a variety of colours, from reddish to purple to blue-black, whilst queens are usually all black.

Size

Adults grow from 6 to 14 millimetres long, with three defined body sections: the head, thorax & abdomen.

Habitat

Meat ants are well-adapted to establish themselves inside in roof, floor or wall voids, especially in moist areas such as the kitchen or bathroom. Unlike many ant species, meat ants prefer sunny areas and often build large gravelly mounds out in the open. They will often compete with banded sugar ants over habitat.

Lifecycle

Fertile queens will mate in spring and begin to form their own colonies, which can grow to house up to 300,000 ants. It takes around 2 months for a meat ant to grow from an egg to an adult and the queen may live for several years.

Native to Argentina, this invasive introduced species can often displace native ants, having a negative effect on the local ecosystem.

Colour

Light to dark brown.

Size

Adults grow from 1.5 to 3 millimetres long, with three defined body sections: the head, thorax & abdomen.

Habitat

Argentine ants are known for aggressively usurping the nests of other species. Their nests can be hard to find, as they will often travel long distances to find food. They are well-adapted to establish themselves inside in roof, floor or wall voids, especially in moist areas such as the kitchen or bathroom. Outside they may live in tree trunks, under plant debris and near or under pavement.

Lifecycle

There are numerous queens in each colony. Colonies are built up in early spring when the winged queens and winged fertile males are produced. Afterwards in mid spring, the worker ants are produced.

Coastal brown ants are an invasive species worldwide and are considered a danger to native Australian ant species.

Colour

Yellowish brown to dark reddish brown.

Size

Adults grow from 1.5 to 2.5 millimetres long, with three defined body sections: the head, thorax & abdomen. The soldier ants are larger and more robust than the regular worker ants.

Habitat

Coastal brown ant nests are often found in the walls of buildings and behind skirting boards. Outside, they will nest in dry soil along pathways and walls. They tend to leave small mounds of dry dirt near edges and cracks in the pavement.

Lifecycle

There is usually just one or two reproductive queens of the colony, who shed their wings after mating. The rest are either winged males who simply mate with the queen, or wingless worker ants who do everything else.

Pharaoh ants are notorious indoor pests.

Due to their preference for warm, humid areas, they are often found in wall cavities of heated buildings such as hospitals.

Colour

Infertile workers are yellow-brown with a darker abdomen, winged males are black and winged queens are dark red. All pharaoh ants have large black eyes.

Size

Adults grow from 1.5 to 6 millimetres long, with three defined body sections: the head, thorax & abdomen. The base of the thorax, before the abdomen is small and forms two small segments.

Habitat

Their trails can often be found in well-heated areas of buildings such as inside wall, floor & roof cavities. They can be hard to exterminate, as often their central seed colony can split into many budding colonies, only to regroup later.

Lifecycle

The complete lifecycle from egg to Adult takes less than two months, with queens only living for 4-12 months and workers even less. There are several queens within each colony.

They are so named because when crushed, odorous house ants produce a rancid buttery, coconut odour.

Colour

Odorous house ants vary from brown to black.

Size

Adults grow from 1.5 to 3.2 millimetres long, with three defined body sections: the head, thorax & abdomen. Like Singapore ants, their antennae are separated into 12 distinct segments.

Habitat

They are generally attracted to moist environments. Indoors they may be in house plants or damp wall cavities such as the kitchen or bathroom, while outside they may form nests under rocks or exposed soil.

Lifecycle

Odorous house ant colonies consist of multiple nests which contain multiple reproducing queens. After the eggs are laid, they take between 1-3 months to mature into adults From adulthood, fertile males will mate and die soon afterwards, whilst workers and queens may live for several months.

Singapore ants are an invasive global species that are notorious pests.

In urban areas, their chewing activity can cause structural damage in buildings as well as serious damage to electronics and vehicles. They have also been known to bite humans aggressively, which can be painful.

Colour

They range in colour from light to dark brownish yellow, usually with a darker chocolate brown abdomen.

Size

Adult Singapore ants are quite small, growing from 1.8 to 3.5 millimetres long, with three defined body sections: the head, thorax & abdomen. The base of the thorax, before the abdomen is small and forms two small segments. The head is square with 12 segmented antennae.

Habitat

They are very well-adapted to establish themselves inside in roof, floor or wall voids and in cupboards, especially in rooms like the kitchen, where food sources are more easily available. Outside they build their nests under pavement and rocks or beside walls.

Lifecycle

Each colony has multiple queens, which lay several eggs after mating. The rest are either winged males who simply mate with the queens, or wingless worker ants who do everything else.