Honeypot ants are not dangerous. They will never sting or bite you unless they feel threatened, but their main diet is flowers – which means they’re pretty destructive to your garden!
About Honeypot Ants
They are often found in deserts and other arid locations, such as the southern United States, Mexico, southern Africa and Australia.
Worker honey ants bring back food to store large amounts of liquid food inside the abdomen of other ants hanging from the nest’s ceilings, called honeypot ants. They can grow to the size of a grape and weigh as much as a gram. This liquid is then released back as food to the colony.
How to prevent honey ants from entering my house?
Honey ants won’t enter your home if you sweep up after cooking and cover any cracks or gaps in the walls. They always look for sweet food items, so they clean up often. If not, they will find a way inside! When it’s warm outside, plants around the house can also attract them with their delicious nectar; make sure to trim back any flowers near windows or doors, as this will help keep honey ants out of your property.
How to get rid of honey ants?
You can remove honey ants by baiting them out, drawing them into a trap, putting some sweet food into a bait box, and waiting for their arrival. It’s always best to have more than one down. So, you can close up and remove the others whilst still filling up the other bait boxes. Keep repeating until the last honeypot ant makes its way into the bait box. You can then relocate them to somewhere away from your home. The other option is to poison them. However, they are amazing little creatures and do not harm you when away from your house or business establishment.
The process of using a bait box can be long, as not all the ants will leave the nest, and their nests are located in deep places. Usually, the ants collecting the food will go and return. However, they will have no choice when hungry or when the food workers are not returning to the colony.
Sometimes, it depends on how big the colony is and where it is. You will need to call a professional. These ants are great at storing food within other ants, and they could have a week’s supply of food already stocked up. They stock up their food by filling the abdomens of other ants to then feed to the colony.
A professional will result in the quickest action possible and kill them using air sprays full of poison.
Conclusion
Now you know honeypot ants are not dangerous. There is no need to panic. However, if they’re in your house and the bait box didn’t work, or you haven’t got the time. It’s time for a professional exterminator who will do whatever it takes to get rid of these for you.
