White-footed
Ants: Check Their Feet
These are small ants that resemble odorous house ants, but have a little darker body and very pale (whitish) feet. These ants are wide spread in tropical and subtropical areas of the world, including south Florida (mainly Broward, Dade, and Palm Beach Counties), southern California and Hawaii. Their natural nesting sites are found in tree hollows, under loose bark, or even in or under piles of organic debris. Their colonies have many reproductives, and usually number in the millions. There are multiple nesting sites within one colony: and workers, young, and food are regularly exchanged among ants from different nest sites. White-footed ants often infest attics of residential structures, and frequently cause electrical problems by infesting junction and switch boxes and shorting out circuits, including those in air conditioners. In Florida, swarming occurs from late May to mid-June each year. Food exchange in white-footed ant colonies does not occur by way of oral exchange, but instead by way of “trophic eggs,” which are produced by all female ants. Because of this, typical slow-acting baits will not work against these ants. They must be controlled by exclusion and thorough treatment of all nest sites. Quick-acting toxic baits, small area treatments near nest sites with growth regulators, and possibly residual treatments of non-repellent pesticides which are secondarily shared among nest mates by direct contact may prove helpful. In brief, white-footed ants are hard to control especially when they suddenly invade a structure in overwhelming numbers.