Carpenter Ant

Natural Habitat

Found globally, typically nesting in moist or decaying wood such as dead logs, tree stumps, and hollow trees, but also in structural wood in homes.

Diet & Feeding

Omnivorous; they eat protein from other insects and sugar from honeydew produced by aphids. They do not eat wood but excavate it for nesting.

Behavior Patterns

Social insects with a caste system including workers and a queen. Primarily nocturnal, they create elaborate galleries in wood and may establish satellite colonies near their main nest.

Risks & Benefits

Risks include structural damage to homes if nests are built in wooden supports. Benefits include recycling nutrients back into the soil by decaying wood and acting as a food source for predators.

Identified on: 6/7/2026