Some species of ants are dangerous and are responsible for deadly stings and painful bites, but pyramid ants are considered peaceful creatures.
Are Pyramid Ants Dangerous? Pyramid ants are not considered dangerous due to their non-aggressive nature, small colony size, and mild stings. Moreover, they live outside the home and cause minimal damage to plants. They do not cause property damage and are not harmful to humans but deadly to fire ants and feed on these aggressive insects.
Pyramid ants resemble sugar and pavement ants due to preferences for sweet food items and darker bodies, but they avoid biting and attacking like other species.
Why are pyramid ants not considered dangerous?
These are not dangerous because they are not aggressive and remain busy in their activities or hunting of insects.
Their carnivorous habits pose a risk of death to other insect populations in the garden, living on the plants or hiding in the grass.
This way, they ultimately benefit humans and the ecosystem by becoming natural predators for the pest population commonly present in the garden.
In addition, their nesting habits also make them non-dangerous because they do not infest indoors and make nests outside the building. So, there is less risk of bites to children or pets.
They do not cause any significant structural damage to property by chewing the wood material and wires like carpenter ants usually do.
They have smaller colonies based on only a few hundred insects that are easier to remove from a house. They appear reddish brown or black and make smaller underground nests as they need only a few feet of space to live.
The massive colonies dig deeper into the ground and affect the house’s stability, but you do not have to face this problem if pyramid ants infest the lawn.
They are not responsible for deadly and painful bites because they possess small teeth according to their body size that do not allow deeper penetration into the skin.
Accordingly, they are not considered dangerous because their stings and bites do not cause pain, redness, or swelling in the affected area.
They cause minimal damage to plants or landscapes, as insects are their primary food source. It means they do not chew leaves or support aphids for growth until they have insects.
Are pyramid ants dangerous for humans?
Pyramid ants do not pose any danger to humans and are harmless creatures due to their non-aggressive or calm nature, as they remain busy hunting smaller insects.
They do not find humans as a food source and avoid attacking larger pet animals and children. They only become aggressive when humans interfere with their colonies and underground nests.
In addition, they do not become defensive until they feel a threat to their nests and colonies because these social insects never compromise their colony’s survival.
Occasionally, they bite humans by dipping their small mandibles on the skin and breaking the outer layer of the skin, but they cannot cause much harm due to their tiny teeth.
They also possess a small stinger connected to the poison gland, which helps transfer the formic acid into the prey’s body. However, the small stinger cannot transfer a sufficient amount of poison.
In the same way, their venom glands have less toxic formic acid that does not cause severe redness or swelling on the skin. It can cause only mild irritation and discomfort on the affected spot.
So, there is nothing to worry about pyramid ants because they are not poisonous and dangerous for humans, and they avoid getting closer to people.
Are pyramid ants deadly for fire ants?
Pyramid ants do not cause potential harm to people and plants, but they can act as deadly predators for other insects belonging to the same or different species or genus.
They feed on fire ants and are active predators of the swarmer of the fire ant colony. Moreover, they choose locations for nest building by ensuring that fire ant nests are present at close distance.
The presence of cone-shaped mounds in the gardens also indicates the presence of dangerous fire ants at the closest distance because they live close to each other.
They are peaceful creatures, while fire ants are aggressive and deadly and are widely known for their painful stings.
They have prominent behavioral differences because fire ants usually attack after the disturbance of mounds, and the pyramid species hide in the depths of their nests.
However, these are predatory and actively feed on small insects, including fire ants, to meet their nutritional needs. This way, they are helpful for gardening and removing the pest population.
In addition, their presence can help reduce the risk of attack from deadly species of insects and ensure the protection of children and pets.
How often do pyramid ants sting?
Pyramid ants do not sting as they preferably use their powerful teeth to fight predators and deal with attackers. They have a small stinger attached to their abdomen.
It rarely happens when they feel helpless in front of their prey or predator and use their stinger to make every possible effort to win the war.
Most commonly, they prefer to bite hard on the skin of animals for hunting purposes, as their diet primarily relies on smaller insects and vertebrates.
Moreover, they keep a stinger as a last weapon for use at a particular time of the war when other weapons fail to ensure their success.
These peaceful creatures do not actively seek confrontation until they feel a potential threat from the opponent that can be an accidental disturbance of the nest.
In addition, they are not involved in multiple stinging practices as their small stinging organ does not facilitate repeated stings because there is a risk of damage.
However, the frequency of stings depends on the threat’s perception because workers can sometimes sacrifice their lives for the colony’s survival.
How do you stop pyramid ants from coming into the house?
Pyramid ants are commonly present outdoors as they build nests in open spaces and sunny lawn areas. However, they can get inside homes for food and shelter sometimes.
Rainy weather and stormy winds can destroy their mounds, so they look for safe places for temporary shelter until they find another suitable place for building a nest.
You have to stop them from entering your home by sealing broken window seals, wall holes, and floor cracks.
Moreover, they can also reach indoors if sweet food crumbs and juicy spills are on the floors because they prefer sweet food items.
You have to remove the stains of food and crumbs and keep the floors clean to reduce the risk of infestation indoors because it is frustrating to see these insects moving on food trays.
In addition, they can also get into laundry clothes, kitchen cabinets, and sinks, shower drains or bathtubs, and many other areas of the house to look for water and food sources.
You can put traps to kill them because it is easy to kill their colonies quickly, as workers can easily transfer the bait ingredients down to their colony.
Furthermore, remove water on the floors and schedule pest control services if you suffer from frequent attacks of these insects each year.
Related Articles: