For non-chemical control, destroy nests and habitat with regular mowing and other lawn maintenance.Always follow the label instructions carefully, but 2-5 tablespoons of granular bait scattered over the colony’s central opening should be sufficient to control the colony.Products with abamectin, like Advance 375A Select Granular Ant Bait, bifenthrin, like Talstar PL Granules and hydramethylnon, like Maxforce Complete Granular Bait, among many others, will all be effective against harvester ants.Nearly any granular ant bait will work, but look for those labeled for use on harvester ants. Granular ant baits are the best choice to control harvester ants.However, if control becomes necessary, you can easily get rid of harvester ants using the right professional products. They provide food for many animals, and also help distribute grass seed, and are overall beneficial. Harvester ants should be left alone if they are not a direct threat or nuisance. At certain times during the year, winged ants will emerge to find new nest sites and become a nuisance, but this is short lived. Red Harvester Ants, Pogonomyrmex baratus Characteristics: Red colored body Have a row of hairs on the underside of the head (psammaphore) Has a powerful sting Have 12 segmented antennae without a club The workers of this species are monomorphic (one size) although variations in size occur. There will be no grass in a rough three to six foot circle surrounding the center of the nest. A harvester ant nest will have a central entrance with a small mound in the center. This helps to regulate the temperature in the nest below ground. They get their name from the way they gather seeds and remove grass around their nest area. They are generally not considered to be serious pests, but since they can inflict painful stings, having them near a playground or your front door, it’s not an ideal situation. There are many species of harvester ants, and they are very common, especially west of the Mississippi. In general, if a person is highly allergic to wasp and bee stings, they are usually highly allergic to ant stings.Īlways seek the advice and assistance of a physician if bitten or stung by ants.Harvester ants are larger ants, about ¼ to ½ inch long and can be red to dark brown and even black. Signs of an allergic reaction may include sneezing, wheezing, hives, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, sudden anxiety, dizziness, difficulty breathing, chest tightness and itching or swelling of the eyes, lips or other areas of the face, rapid loss of blood pressure, fainting and coma. Depending on the age of the person stung, the number of stings inflicted and the degree of allergic reaction to the ant’s venom, more serious symptoms and perhaps anaphylaxis may occur.Īnaphylaxis is a complex response, but simply stated is a potentially life-threatening allergic reaction that may occur within a very short period of time after exposure to an allergen. Other symptoms such as redness and swelling occur around the sting site. Most sting symptoms are minor and involve moderate or intense pain that will go away within several hours. Aggressive ants such as harvester ants are medically important since their targets are usually stung many times and in some cases are stung many times by a single ant. While many of the more aggressive ant species bite, the primary reactions are caused by the sting and resulting injection of venom into the skin. What an ant sting looks like Signs and Symptoms
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