Hobbies And Interests
Size
Few ants in the United States grow to be as big as the carpenter ant. Adults can be 1/4 inch long for a minor worker ant, 1/2 inch long for a major worker, with the winged reproductives of the species reaching 7/16 inch long. The queen carpenter ant has been known to exceed 9/16 inch.
Features
Carpenter ants go through the usual stages that most insects do to reach adulthood. They hatch from eggs as larva and become pupa before changing into adults. The adults have six legs and the three typical body regions of insects--head, thorax and abdomen.
Types
The color of carpenter ants can vary from black or a yellowish-red to black and reddish-orange. The black carpenter ant, a common representative of the family, is a dull black with yellow or white hairs on its abdomen. The smaller carpenter ant is also black. The red carpenter ant is a shade of red almost bordering on brown.
Identification
Like all ants, the carpenter ant has a narrow waist that connects the thorax to the abdomen. The wings of flying carpenter ants, the ones that leave the colony to begin new ones, are shorter in the back than in the front. Carpenter ants have antennae similar to those of other ant species. They are elbowed and segmented, appearing to bend at right angles about halfway up.
Considerations
To find carpenter ants, you can search in hollow trees, posts, logs and other wooden structures. Carpenter ants don't eat the wood, as they are unable to digest and process the cellulose in wood like a termite can. They simply will hollow out wood to make their home. They chew and spit out the softer wood, leaving the harder wood as the walls to the many tunnels they make. The carpenter ant keeps a very clean house, carrying all wood debris away from the nest. Carpenter ants dine on animal and plant foods such as other insects, fruits, juices, sweets like sugar and syrup, and meats. They are active at night but may send lone scouts looking for food during the day.