Mortein

There are more than 9,500 ant species worldwide. Ants have a narrow "waist" and elbowed (crooked) antennae and are usually recognised by their social behaviour (large numbers usually trailing along foundations, kitchen cabinets, sidewalks, etc.).

Ants’ colonies are organised in different castes (social groups): workers, soldiers, winged males and the queen(s).

• The workers are sterile wingless females and their function is to build the nest, forage for food, feed immature ants and defend the colony.
• The soldiers are larger individuals with an unusually large head and when present they are often used for seed-cracking
• The winged males have the sole function to mate with females and usually die after mating.
• The queen is the largest individual of the colony and can live up to 5 years. She becomes an egg laying machine and rules the colony. Some colonies have more than one queen.

Ants have an important role in the ecosystem as predators on other insects, feeding on rotting plants and animals therefore "cleaning up" the environment. Ants feed on almost any foodstuffs and their food preferences vary from species to species. Ants have a second stomach for the storage and regurgitation of food. They use trophallaxis meaning that they pass food between each other. This is why when they consume bait, they can pass it on to other ants which results in killing several ants with just one ant feeding from the bait.

The presence of ants on food can introduce micro-organisms picked up when they travel over garbage or faeces and then move on to the food source. This can cause diarrhea, salmonella and staphylococcus.
Ants such as the bulldog ant create discomfort with their bites and stings. Some species can cause structural damages when they nest around home foundations and in structural voids.