Ant Management
All ants, together with wasps and bees, belong to the scientific order of insects called Hymenoptera (which means “membranous wing”). Within the Hymenoptera all ant species belong to the family Formicidae (of which more than 8,800 species have been described to date). Of the estimated 4-5,000 ant species present in Australia, very few are troublesome (or classified as pests) and those that are, are mostly “vagrant” or “tramp” species which have been accidentally introduced from overseas. These tramp species (Singapore ant, coastal brown ant, Argentine ant, white-footed house ant, pharaoh ant, and the black house ant) infest buildings in search of water and food, and will take all kinds of domestic foods, ranging from oils and butter to sweet substances, meats and grain-based items like bread and biscuits.
Whilst an essential part of our native environment, several native species can also be injurious to human enterprise and thus classified as pests. Most prominent are the Australian bulldog and jumper ants. There are many known cases of severe human allergic reactions (even death) due to their stings. Other troublesome native ants include some of the meat ants and the green weaver ants.
All ants are liquid feeders and workers cannot ingest non-liquid substrates. Liquid ant baits are therefore the perfect answer to appeal to most pest ant feeding preferences. Granular baits provide a means to disperse a bait toxicant in a broader manner (primarily for outdoor foraging ants). Maxforce Liquid Ant Bait sets the industry standard for palatability and bait uptake which no other bait has been shown to exceed. Maxforce GB granular Ant Bait and Maxforce Granular Insect Bait provide two other granular options which suit broader outdoor application (or indoor application in enclosed situations such as wall voids or bait stations).
The range of products which are currently recommended for ant control are listed below:
