For owners of a house or apartment, it becomes a real nuisance if an ant colony begins to develop in the walls of their home. First you can notice one or more individuals. But over time, the number of uninvited guests increases significantly. If you destroy the insects found here and there on the owners' road, this will not produce results.
The reason for the rapid spread of pests in the house is the ant uterus. It is from this person that the successful distribution of the species throughout the apartment depends. To get rid of a colony of ants in your home, you need to know how their uterus looks, as well as to know several features of its behavior.
Features of the ant uterus
The ant uterus (photo of the insect is presented below) takes the highest place in the hierarchy of these insects.
Different types of duties and relationships of the queen with the entire clan are somewhat different. But she enjoys special privileges in domestic (pharaonic) ants.
The uterus does not protect its place of dislocation, it does not take part in the processes of food supply. She also does not build a house, does not engage in garbage collection. Its purpose is to ensure the continuous replenishment of its colony.
All other representatives of this large family fully comply with the interests of the uterus. They create all the conditions for her to be able to freely replenish the colony population with new individuals. This principle of behavior has become fundamental to the survival of this species and explains its distribution throughout the planet.
Appearance
What the ant uterus looks like (photo below) should be considered in detail.
Getting to know her is very simple. It is significantly larger in size than other ants that make up this colony.
The uterus has a large round abdomen. It has a darker color. Thin light stripes are visible on the abdomen. The abdomen has a length of about 3-4 mm. It is intended for laying eggs.
The Queen's large dimensions make her clumsy. She is less mobile than other ants. Also in this individual, the thoracic region is quite developed. It is wider than that of working ants. This is due to the presence of small wings, which a young female possesses before the appearance of her own colony. The uterus drops wings when the base of a new clan occurs.
Propagation Features
Studying the question of what the ant uterus looks like, it is necessary to consider the features of their reproduction. In almost all species, once a year, a large number of heterosexual individuals appear from pupae. These males and females are capable of breeding.
Mating occurs during flight. If the female has been fertilized, she will not return to her anthill anymore. Such individuals fly around in search of a suitable place for laying their first eggs. Further from them, working individuals appear.
It is after the summer that the uterus gnaws off its wings, which allows it to receive additional nutrients to continue its kind. Thus colonies of many species of ants are born.
Colony of domestic ants
The ant uterus has a more privileged position in the colony of domestic representatives of the species. However, with the advent of a large number of them, the ratio of working ants to them becomes somewhat dismissive. The uterus lives up to 15 years. During her life, she is able to lay more than 500 thousand eggs.
Her environment is somewhat different from other clans. The largest colony, which was recorded by scientists, consisted of 340 thousand workers ants. But in ordinary nests there are up to 15 thousand individuals.
It should be noted that in almost all colonies female ants are working.
But in males, males are also found in small numbers. But the rest of the community treats them badly.
In the colony of pharaoh ants, which can be found within the walls of the house, only 10-15% of the working individuals are engaged in the search and extraction of food. All other members of a large family are in their den and are engaged in the maintenance of the uterus. Some individuals care for offspring. So the visible part of this anthill is insignificant in comparison with its actual size.
Difficulty identifying the uterus
The question of how to find the ant uterus in domestic representatives of the species is rather complicated. The fact is that the reproduction process in these insects is different from others. The female becomes able to give offspring when she reaches a certain size. After the mating occurs, the uterus does not leave its colony. She remains here.
In the colony of domestic ants, because of this feature, there can be several hundred fruitful queens. They coexist peacefully within the same colony, without showing aggression towards each other.
When ants become crowded in their nest, they simply find a place near the main colony. They keep in touch with her. The uterus can move from one nest to another. This is already a super anthill. Destroying it is very difficult. To do this, you need to find all the nests and their queens.
Classification
Even knowing what it looks like and how to get an ant uterus, you yourself can not cope with the destruction of a colony of ants in your house. Therefore, it is better to entrust such work to professionals.
In other forms, the division into classes is quite simple. The uterus, laying eggs, marks them with special pheromones. These substances inhibit the sexual development of offspring. So there are working individuals.
When the colony becomes very large, the uterus will not have time to mark all the eggs. Thus, individuals ready for fertilization begin to appear. This is a natural process of regulation of numbers in other colonies.
In domestic ants, the uterus can be compared to a cash cow on a farm. Working ants take care of her, but if she stops laying enough eggs, the uterus can be killed. This is how natural selection occurs.
How to find a nest?
The question of how to catch an ant uterus is complicated by the presence of a large number of fruitful individuals. Therefore, in order to get rid of the colony, it is necessary to look for all the nests.
Ants form their colonies in moist and warm places. Favorite premises in this regard for them are the kitchen and bathroom. Also, this is most likely a dark corner inaccessible to others. Most often they are found in channels for electrical wires, in voids under a tile, socket outlets, etc.
Sometimes the anthill is not in the apartment, but in the nearby territory. For example, it can be interfloor ceilings. Searches can take a lot of time and energy. But you still have to pay attention to this issue. It is best to notice the direction in which the working ants are removed with pieces of food. If no action is taken, the colony can grow so much that its functioning will be equated with a natural disaster.
