Hi, I went away for the weekend (the AC was turned off and it got hot) and came back to find a bunch of dead bugs on the floor under a window. The window has a metal frame that looks a bit rotten but there are no obvious holes. Most of the bugs are very small with wings, a few were larger and had bodies with two segments and wings. They were all dead or barely alive. Can anyone identify them and recommend action? Thx
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Great picture, I did look. I don't know what kind of bugs. others on this list will know.
I'd look in the phone book in the government section. "Agricultural department" or some such. Sweep up a bunch of these bugs, into a glass jar, and screw the lid on. Go ask.
Also look for farm and garden stores near you, they may know.
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Looks like termites to me -- not flying ants.
Here's a photo of each:
Or you could do this to see how to find out if they are termites or flying ants:
A carpenter ant colony on the move because of dry conditions (maybe). It might be smart to look for damage they have left behind, typically in areas where water leakage has happened. If there are nearby trees already infested, they can move into houses where untreated wet wood might exit.
Joe
Does not look good. I'd start poking around the wood looking for damage. These could be termites. Normal termites are white but when swarming are dark like ants. I decided to have the exterior of my house treated with thermador this spring because of all the termites in stumps around the house and fact that neighbors on both sides had them and were treated in past years. There are shorter acting chemical treatments you can do yourself but it is hard to reach foundation around patios and porches next to house.
Termite inspection was perfunctory in my estimation since inspector did not poke foundation wood like I had done and there was no evidence of any in the house.
Swarming in the house normally means wood damage.
You need to get a magnifying glass and post a close-up picture.
It does look like termites to me. One way to compare is that termites have two body sections (a head and body) while ants have three sections (head, middle section, body). Also termite wings on each side tend to be more equal in length.
The best thing to do is save some of the flying insects in a jar or container and let an exterminating company look at them and check your house. They can identify if they are termites or flying ants.
The treatment is usually Termidor around the exterior of the home. That provides a barrier, plus the termites come in contact with it and bring it back to the nest and that kills the colony.
Also, here is a fairly good YouTube video that shows how to determine the diference between swarming termites and flying ants:
P.S. Well, after I viewed the YouTube video, I am not so sure they are termites. The photo isn't very clear, but the video says that for termites the length of the wings should be much larger than the termite body size. If the wings are only slightly larger than the body size, it tends to be flying ants.
Again, the photo is not very clear, so who knows -- but maybe this is good news for the OP.
We had termites once -- they gathered on the sliding glass door. The wings were white or gray -- and that was the most prominent thing about them. Hardly noticed the body. They didn't look like that picture posted. I am in Florida and have had some "new to me" bugs this year -- they gather under the window in the dining area where I have another computer. You don't notice them at first because they blend in with the wires -- they are black and very small--and there are webs around the area (like spider webs). Don't know how they get in -- don't think its through the window above them. Think its through wires (cable comes in there from outside). Have no idea what they are -- they clump together and killing them is easy...they don't try to run away.
Yes, it is good. I went through this many years ago, pre-internet and was able to distinguish between ants and termites with a swarm in my garage which on close examination were clearly ants.
Stumps near my house are full of termites and I noted the swarming ones were not white like the termites themselves but the color of ants. The thermador along the house does not appear to have affected them and it's been a couple of months since I had the treatment. I was concerned that after the stumps were consumed they were traveling down the dead roots and I had seen them within 5 feet of the house. Terminex said it is good for about 10 years and I'm getting their insurance against wood damage or infestation. I could have kept putting down shorter acting stuff available to home owners but decided on thermador for peace of mind.
My next door neighbor who discovered them with a swarm in the house had the juvenile hormone treatment and I noticed that it wiped out all the termites in the area but they are back now. Exterminators said these colonies can attack wood hundreds of feet away.
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