During warm periods in Canada, you must have noticed the presence of a large number of ants in your home or workplace. On the other hand, when winter comes, you find that these critters have disappeared. It then becomes legitimate to ask yourself if these insects live in winter or the cold eliminates them. Exterminator in Montreal tells you bluntly what happens to ants in winter.
Yes, ants live in winter
During the winter period, thefourmis hibernate. This can last from November to February and beyond depending on the climate. To spend the winters, these insects take shelter in their nests, taking care to occupy cells located deep down. This puts them out of reach of the thaw. To survive, they consume their food reserves that they had built up during hot periods.
Some ants, including carpenter ants , are able to enter a state of quiescence in cells (chambers) designed for this purpose. The temperatures in these cells are between 10 °C and 13 °C. This allows these insects to reduce their metabolism in order to overwinter while waiting for warmer periods to return.
Rather than entering their winter sleep state, some ant species use their bodies to produce heat and regulate the internal temperature of the chamber.
How to explain the presence of ants at home during the winter?
It is in their nests that ants spend winters. So, if you notice the presence of ants in the house during this period of extreme cold, there is only one explanation. Their nest is in your home. It may have been built inside the crawl space of the house. The colony can also be found in the insulating lining of the house.
This colony is undoubtedly home to the Queen. This explains the fact that these ants are active in a period during which they are supposed to be in a state of quiescence. In addition, heating the house creates favorable living conditions comparable to those of hot spells. As soon as you see them, react quickly by contacting Exterminateur in Montreal for a quick and consistent disinsection intervention.
What do ants do once spring comes?
In the spring, ants wake up. Carpenter ants, for example, are resuming their destructive work of the wooden structures of houses. It is for this reason that it is recommended to exterminate ants during cold periods.
Indeed, during cold periods, these insects look for less food. This is far from being the case during the beautiful temperatures. The ants that go in search of food are the worker ants. As soon as they find them (usually in houses), they return to the nests to inform other ants of this discovery.
As they travel back to the colony, they leave odorous footprints on the way from where the food is to the nest.
Ants in the house in cold or hot periods: what to do?
In winter, some species such as carpenter ants may be found in your home. In addition to the internal temperature of the house, there is the presence of damp wood in the house that promotes infestation. In Canada, this species of ant is the most invasive. It is among those that are considered very dangerous because of their nuisance capacity. They will destroy everything made of wood in your home.
Regardless of the species of ants in your home, it is safe to eliminate it and eradicate all colonies. This is obviously not easy, because these small invaders use a network system of colonies with a single queen. Until it is eliminated, the invasion will continue. That’s why you need a professional team like Exterminateur in Montreal.
Once we arrive at your home, we carry out a thorough inspection of the interior and surroundings of the house. The goal is to detect primary nests and satellites. The precise location of each nest is particularly difficult. When we get there, we proceed to destroy all these nests in order to eliminate especially the queen.
The antiparasitic extermination in the case of an infestation by ants and other pests is carried out by our company using approved techniques. The products used by Exterminateur in Montreal are also environmentally friendly. Therefore, trust us to end up with ants at any time.
