Termites Vs. Flying Ants

Telling Flying Ants and Termites Apart

Here are a few of the differences between flying termites and their carpenter ant counterparts:

• Bodily features. The most obvious difference is that carpenter ants have a pinched waist, while termite bodies are a consistent oblong shape. Carpenter ants have “elbowed” antennae that bend in the middle, and termites have straight ones. Ants have two sets of wings, one short and one long; termites also have two pairs of wings, but they are about the same size.
• Visibility. Carpenter ants eat plant matter and other insects, but not wood – so they will have to leave their tunnels to find food. Termites, on the other hand, eat wood – so they’ll never have to leave. This means you’re more likely to spot ants around your property if you have an infestation.
• Diet. Both bugs are infamous for their ability to infest a structure without being noticed. Since carpenter ants don’t eat wood – they only excavate it to make their tunnels – you might find wood shavings where they have burrowed inside. However, these shavings could be mistaken for frass (termite droppings.)
• Nesting. Termite nests usually start underground, beneath the structure they plan to infest. Carpenter ants are attracted to rotting wood since it’s easier to dig through; you’re more likely to find them where the wood is already damaged.

Carpenter Ants vs. Termites: Damage

Since both types of insects are fairly elusive, you’re more likely to notice the damage they do rather than the bugs themselves. Carpenter ants start with softer, deteriorated wood; they build their tunnels through it, so they look for less resistance. They are unlikely to start digging away at your home or business unless the structure is already deteriorating.

Termites, however, are much less picky; they eat the cellulose in wood, which is present in solid wood as well as decaying wood. Subterranean termites, the most common type in Atlanta, GA, start out underground, build mud tubes up to the structure, and then start to chow down. A single colony can destroy up to a pound of wood per day. Termites are estimated to cause $5 billion of damage to Americans each year.