20 More Amazing Ant Facts

1. Trap-jaw ants can shut their jaws faster than any other in the animal kingdom. They have been recorded closing their jaws at 230 km/hr (143 mph).

2. Bamboo nesting ants that live in Malaysia deal with frequent flooding by drinking the water that is inside the nest, and excreting it outside the nest.

3. The mangrove ant which nests in the cavities of wood in mangrove forests deals with flooding by switching to anaerobic respiration. Anaerobic respiration is breathing that uses an alternative to oxygen like sulphur or nitrate. When their nests fill up with water, instead of drowning, they stop breathing air and start breathing chemicals found in the water.

4. The army ants of South America and the driver ants of Africa do not build permanent nests. Instead they roam freely. In an emergency, when they need the safety of a nest the workers form a temporary nest from their own bodies, by holding each other together.

5. Leaf cutter ants live on a fungus that grows only within their colonies. They collect leaves which are taken to the colony, cut into tiny pieces and placed in fungal gardens.

6. Some species of ants can form chains to bridge gaps over water, underground, or through spaces in vegetation.

7. Australian mangrove swamp ants can swim and live in underwater nests. They breathe oxygen stored in pockets in their nests.

8. Blue or copper caterpillars are herded by some ants species. The ants lead the caterpillars to feeding areas in the daytime and then bring them inside the nest at night. The ants then massage (or milk) the caterpillars so that they secrete a honeydew which the ants like to eat.

9. Many tropical tree species have seeds that are dispersed by ants. Seed dispersal is widespread and new estimates suggest that nearly 9% of all plant species may rely on this process.

10. Some birds indulge in a peculiar behaviour called "anting" that is as yet not fully understood. These birds pick up and drop ants onto their wings and feathers or sit on ant nests. It is believed that they do this because the ants kill and remove parasites.

11. In some parts of the world (mainly Africa and South America), army ants are used instead of stitches. The sides of a wound are pressed together and an ant's head is placed on it. The ant seizes the edges of the wound with its jaws. The ant's body is then cut off and the head remains firmly there until the wound heals.

12. In South Africa ants are used to help harvest rooibos which are small seeds used to make a herbal tea. The plant disperses its seeds widely, making manual collection difficult. Black ants collect and store these and other seeds in their nest, where humans can gather them easily. Up to half a pound (450g) of seeds can be collected from one ant-heap.

13. Although ants are found almost every where, a few ant species are actually endangered. In 1985, the Sri Lankan relict ant became the first ant species to be classified as critically endangered. Today, they are only found in one area of Sri Lanka.

14. It has been estimated by E.O.Wilson that the total number of individual ants alive in the world at any one time is between one and ten quadrillion. According to this estimate, the total mass of all the ants in the world is approximately equal to the total mass of the entire human race. In other words if we could put all the ants on the earth in one pile and all the humans on the earth in another pile, the two piles would be about the same size.

15. The eggs of two species of ants are the basis for a dish in Mexico known as escamoles. This is a delicacy and costs around 40 American dollars a pound (or $90 a kilo).

16. In Santanger, Colombia, hormigas culonas ants commonly called "large bottom ants"are toasted alive and eaten while still warm.

17. In areas of India, Burma and Thailand, a paste of the green weaver ant is served as a condiment with curry.

18. In Thailand weaver ants, their eggs and their larvae are used in a salad called red ant egg salad.

19. In North Queensland, Australia, Aborigines mix mashed green ants in water to create a drink similar to lemon squash.

20. Most ants have stingers. Often when people think that they have been bitten by an ant they have instead been stung.

Fire Ant Bites - Protect Yourself Against Them

Fire ants also known as red ants are one of the must aggressive and violent insects, and they will attack almost everything that can possibly threaten and harm them and their colony. Not many people know that the fire ants are an important member of the hymenoptera order in which you can find also insects such as bees and wasps.

The most awful and long-lasting bite it is possessed by the South American Bullet ant, and can cause great sufferings and pains, but it is not causing death.

The most deadly ant bite from Australia is the Jack Jumper ant bite that can easily kill animals and even humans.

The most agonizing and burning ant bites, are possessed only by two types of fire ants

The most aggressive and violent ant bite is held by the Red Imported ants. Their highly deadly poisonous blow contains a highly toxic substance called piperidine alkaloids. The blows can produce on the skin awful white fluid filled bumps.

The bites of the Southern Fire ants can easily produce itchiness and blisters that are usually very painful and annoying.

Although ants are considered as been one of the most important threats for the modern society we live in now, there are still used in many ways. Their destructive behavior that have been to us our enemy it can become our friend, because in many parts of the entire world ants are use to control other threat full insect populations such as the carpenter, pharaoh and argentine ants.

The home-made antidote for ants and ant bites

In order to have an ant proof home, the first thing you need to do is to seal up all the cracks and crevices, especially the little ones, from where ant can easily break in the home and infest you and your family.

Keep all the time of the year your lawns mowed and clean your garden.

Mint is a very powerful insecticide, so you can plant mint inside and outside your home as well.

You can put on your windows and doors solutions based on citronella, citrus, cinnamon or even peppermint, combined with water.

You can also use non-toxic powders that you can find in specialized stores all around the world, such as the Diatomaceous Earth, that can easily destroy exoskeletons, but take care when you use this product. It will be indicated to use a mask for a better protection.

Another old method of cleaning your home by ants and their painful ant bites is to pour boiling water on the ant hill. It can be effective in some cases, but it can make them only retreat temporarily and after that they will come and attack very violent and aggressive.

How to Get Rid of Ants With Ant Repellents

It is not essential to make use of strong chemicals or similar ant repellents to get rid of ants in your house. Simple remedies work wonders. These include:

A very effective ant repellent is home remedy of citrus and water. Vinegar is also very effective. The odor of vinegar repels ants and they never come again to such places. Sprinkle vinegar or citrus solution around places where you locate ants to get rid of ants.

Insecticides like boric acid and borax are effective ant repellents. These are harmless to humans. Sprinkle little of any of these on food that attract ants. Allow ants to carry such food back to their colony. Soon, you would be able to get rid of ants.

Red ants prove very irritating. If you want to get rid of red ants, spray chemicals across the area of ant population like lawns. This acts as a very effective ant repellent.

If you locate ants coming through fissures or cracks, pour liberal amounts of boiling hot water at such places. Ants would soon die. Be sure to pour boiling water as ants can live under water and pouring plain water cannot be an effective ant repellent.

Vaseline and other sticky substances are effective ant repellents. Apply Vaseline around bowls or across areas, you want to keep away from ants.

A permanent way of getting rid of ants is to block fissures, seal holes, gaps, and cracks with flexible calk.

Cream of Wheat is natural ant bait. Allow ants to take back the cereal to their colony. All ants would feed on such cereal. When Cream of Wheat is exposed to internal fluids of ant, it explodes. This helps you get rid of ants altogether.

Black pepper and Cayenne pepper are natural ant repellents as their strong smell provides an easy solution to get rid of ants. Sprinkling few pepper grains around your house or across ant nests can help you get rid of ants.

Cinnamon proves to be similar ants repellent like pepper. This is a very effective ant repellent. Although cinnamon does not kill ants, it does help you get rid of ants as ants find the strong smell of cinnamon too repulsive and never come again.

Coffee powder is another effective ant repellent. Sprinkle or make a line with coffee powder and ants would not cross it. You can get rid of ants without killing them.

Baby powder is another simple and effective ant repellent. Sprinkle baby powder across windowsills, corners of rooms, cracks, doors, fissures, and practically anywhere you locate ants. Baby powder is actually Diatomaceous earth. This is a safe and natural substance and does not affect children or pets. This is an easy way to get rid of ants.

Electronic ant repellent is another effective way to get rid of ants. This repellent does not use chemicals. It only cuts off communication signals between any sweet smelling food and ants. This is an environmental-friendly ant repellent.

Ant Control - Get Rid of Fire Ants With the "Texas Two Step"

Fire ants, also known as red ants, are stinging ants that can be found world wide. Originally imported from South America into Alabama, these ants have spread with relative ease across the entire southern U.S. to become a growing problem for homeowners and farmers. These ants are very resilient and will aggressively defend their nests from any invaders to include humans. Their sting is capable of killing small animals and can be fatal to those humans with severe allergic reactions.

Due to their resiliency, handling fire ants with a mere bait trap will likely be insufficient. That is why researchers out of Texas A&M University invented a special technique to deal with these invasive ants affectionately known as the Texas Two Step. The Texas Two Step as the name implies involves two steps known as broadcasting and drenching.

In step one you "broadcast" a non-toxic bait insecticide. Spread this insecticide in close proximity to the fire ant nests as well as their food source. The foragers will take the bait insecticide back to their nest and spread it into the general ant population. Over time a significant portion of the ants will eat the insecticide to include the queen ant. As a result the queen will become infertile or may die. This reduces the proliferation of the ants as the queen will no longer be able to lay eggs. This step should be performed during times of peak foraging activity in either the summer or fall. That will help ensure that the bait insecticide has the most prolific effect.

In step two you follow up the "broadcast" with a "drenching" using an organic liquid insecticide. This liquid insecticide should be applied liberally to each and every nest in your purview. This second treatment will effectively kill the remaining ants that survived the initial application of the bait insecticide. Fire ant nests are often hidden from plain sight under logs or similar obstructions so it is imperative that you locate and apply this final step directly to each nest or the ants will simply regroup to form a new nest in a new location. An alternative to the liquid insecticide is 2-3 gallons of boiling water. This will kill the ants that remain but is much less effective than the liquid insecticide. The boiling water also has the tendency to kill other vegetation such as grass or plants, so the organic liquid insecticide is generally the preferred method. This step can wait until after the winter months have subsided entering into the spring months. This will effectively eliminate the ants before they ramp up for peak activity during the summer months.