Do Argentine Ants Bite?

Argentine ants (Linepithema humile) are an invasive ant species from South America. Millions of ants of this kind are said to be brought to other parts of the world including the United States aboard coffee ships. Nowadays, an Argentine ant is now considered a nuisance pest, known for its aggressive nature.

So do Argentine ants bite? Argentine ants bite when provoked, but it's not that painful because they're stingless ants due to the absence of a venom-releasing acidopore. If you've encountered a similar-looking ant that has given you painful stings, chances are that you have mistaken the Argentine ant for the wide variety of other invasive ant species.

Read More: How To Tell If Your Ants Are Argentine Ants

Do Argentine Ant Bites Sting? 

Argentine ants also bear no stinger and acidopore (the part where formic acid, a type of venom produced by other ant species, is released). Argentine ants only bite, but their mandibles may be considered too small to cause significant pain to humans, as these ants are only 3 mm or 1/8 inches in length. 

This lack of sting and venom makes these ants a relatively harmless species to humans. Meanwhile, they're known to be aggressive species to other insects; they can displace other native ants due to their behaviors and large colony size. 

Identifying Argentine Ants 

Argentine ants have oval bodies that are dark to reddish-brown in color. They have large compound eyes composed of 100 eye facets per eye, located on their heads which are described to be longer than it is wide. The head also houses 3 pairs of setae located between the jaws.

Argentine ants, like all other insects, have 6 legs, and their segmented bodies are connected with each other via a single waist or petiole that looks like a protrusion between the thorax and the abdomen. Their shiny, velvety bodies are hairless and lack spines at the terminal end of the thorax.

By just looking at them and the foods that they're drawn into, Argentine ants may also be mistaken for another ant pest in homes due to their small sizes. Some of these common ant species have stings and acidopores, unlike the Argentine ant, so these may be the ones that caused the painful bites that you mistake the Argentine ants for.

One of these ants with stings is the red imported fire ants (Solenopsis invicta), which have reddish-brown bodies but may be differentiated from Argentine ants via their two segments of petiole and polymorphic colonies. Noticeable nest mounds of red imported fire ants may also be observed, as compared to the shallow nests of Argentine ants.

Another species commonly mistaken for Argentine ants are the odorous house ants (Tapinoma sessile), which are also dark brown ants with oval, segmented bodies. They're physically indiscernible from Argentine ants but the two can still be differentiated by crushing them. Argentine ants release a musty odor when crushed while odorous house ants release a rotten coconut-like smell.

Signs Of Argentine Ant Infestation

Argentine ant infestation may be determined via their characteristic trails that are about three ants wide and composed of uniform-looking ants. These are pheromone trails that female workers follow to track down sources of food and go back to the Argentine ant nest.

Argentine ants are social insects with a social structure that can have hundreds of queens, enabling their massive colonies to continue thriving even upon the death of their reproductive queens. Upon budding, they can also keep contact with their neighboring colonies, allowing them to recruit additional workers and share them across colonies when necessary.

Argentine ants enter your homes in search of food and moisture. The variety of food that these ants prefer includes dead insects and sugary food, so you may see trails of these ants on the kitchen and lawn and other places of the house where they can get access to these kinds of food.

Argentine ants readily climb your hands when you try to disturb these trails by placing your fingers within the trails. This is a unique behavior that other common species of ants don't do.

Learn More: How to Differentiate Argentine Ants and Fire Ants?

Control And Prevention Of Argentine Ants

The initial steps for the control and prevention of Argentine ants include identifying if it's really Argentine ants that are infesting your homes and identifying the places where they may be frequently found or are nesting. This may help serve as a guide for the right kind of control activities that you may proceed with.

There is a wide variety of choices for ant control. These include physical and chemical control programs that may either block the entry of these ants to your house or exterminate them altogether.

For physical means, you may choose to seal off common entry points of your homes such as windows and doors. You should also make it a point to check your potted plants, as these may serve as vehicles through which the Argentine ants may enter the house. Repairing leaky water pipes and regularly cleaning the house are also helpful physical measures as these attract the Argentine ants inside your homes.

For chemical means, you may opt to use insecticide sprays or ant baits that may help kill Argentine ants. Boric acid may be used as bait which are slow-acting poisons that worker ants may bring to their nests and kill them upon ingestion.

Safer alternatives are also available as chemical means should you not want to experience the toxic side effects of the insecticide sprays, such as the use of natural products like lemon eucalyptus and peppermint.

Exterminate Even The Most Aggressive Pests With Pinnacle Pest Control

Despite their aggressive nature that may bring negative impact to other fauna, Argentine ants (Linepithema humile) don't pose much threat to humans as they rarely bite and do so only when provoked. Regardless, they're still nuisance pests that affect the quality of foods at home so they must be eradicated.

At Pinnacle Pest Control, we can help you gain complete control against even the most aggressive pests at home through our in-depth knowledge and the use of the latest technologies related to pest control. Combat these aggressive pests now by contacting us at 916.381.5793 to get your free quote.

Learn More: How To Get Rid Of Argentine Ants Naturally