Ant Control: Ants Life Expectancy
When you look at other human beings, you can usually tell roughly how old they are. That’s not the case when you see an ant. Our eyes can’t detect any difference between an ant that’s a young adult versus one that’s the ant-equivalent of a senior citizen. And just what is a senior citizen in ant terms? How long does a typical ant live?
The answer is that an ants lifespan varies. It turns out there is no such thing as a typical lifespan for every kind of ant. Some ants have a lifespan that’s like a flash in the pan, living for only a few brief weeks. Others hang around for decades (hopefully not on your kitchen counters!).
It all depends on the ant’s species, gender, role in its colony, and food source.
Average Lifespan of an Ant
If you’re an ant, it pays to be royalty. The queen ant of a colony can live as long as 28 years. Compare that to the poor drone male ant. Its sole function is to breed with the queen. That may sound like a good life, but there’s a big catch. Once the drone has done its duty, then it’s all over. Breeder males die within weeks.
Most ants are workers. They are female but, unlike the queen, they are sterile. Their lifespan is in-between that of the short-lived drones and the long-lived queens. Worker ants can live up to seven years.
The average lifespan of an ant also depends on its species. Black garden ants can live up to 20 years, while fire ant workers won’t last even a month. A carpenter ant lifespan is in-between – up to 10 years for a queen and seven for a worker.
Ants Life Cycle
An ants life begins in an egg. If the egg was fertilized, the ant will be female. If it wasn’t fertilized, then there’s a male inside. In the next stage, lasting 1-to-2 weeks, the egg transforms into a rapidly growing larva. Next comes 6-to-10 weeks in the pupae stage.
When the ant emerges, it’s a full-fledged adult! It’s all ready to go to work, or to breed, or – if it’s very lucky – to become a queen.
The only ants that are fertile are the queen and the male drones. After a drone fertilizes the queen, its job is done, and that’s the end of its lifespan. The queen goes on to lay her eggs, and the cycle of ant life continues.
This reproductive system works very well. It has enabled ants to survive as a species for 100 million years or more! No wonder ants can be so hard to get out of your house. It’s time to call a pest control professional!
Contact Clint Miller Exterminating
If you’re having trouble getting rid of the ants in your North Carolina home, Clint Miller Exterminating can help! We’ve been helping people solve their pest problems for more than 30 years, and we would be glad to work with you too!
We’ll check out your house and design an individualized treatment plan. We often treat both inside and outside to control the ants from both sides. When we treat inside, we spray mostly just in cracks and crevices – not on your furniture or walls. We also offer a low-toxicity gel bait for your kitchen countertops and cabinets.
We serve the North Carolina communities of Concord, Mt. Pleasant, Albemarle, Salisbury, Harrisburg, and the surrounding areas. For the professional help you need to get the ants out of your house, contact Clint Miller Exterminating today!
