Argentine ants Elk Grove pest control experts know all to well. Ants worldwide engage in battles using the weapons nature gave them. Some have strong armor, deadly stingers, or sharp mandibles. However, a small and unimpressive-looking ant ruled the largest empire ever built by an ant colony. This ant, known as “Linepithema humile,” spans continents and wages wars that result in millions of casualties.

The story of this unlikely warrior begins in the floodplains surrounding the Paraná River in South America. This crowded megalopolis is home to dozens of ant species, including fire ants, army ants, and the plain, unimpressive Argentine ant, which somehow reign supreme.

Small Argentine Ants Are Fierce

Despite measuring only 2 to 3 millimeters in length and having small mandibles, this ant species manages to survive among larger competitors. Their colonies can range from minor to exceptionally large in various locations, such as under logs, loose leaf litter, or even in former ant colonies. Argentine ants use their bodies as a swarming weapon against their rivals, making them a formidable opponent.

Did you know that Argentine ants are unique in having multiple queens in their colonies? That allows them to produce many ants, with one queen for every 120 workers laying up to 60 eggs daily. As their colonies grow and expand to new territories, mutations occur, and their DNA slowly changes over time.

So, although they remain very cooperative and well-organized within their colonies, they fight vicious wars against other Argentine ant colonies, as they become more like distant cousins. In addition to waging war with every ant species they encounter. Argentine ants become highly aggressive with formidable opponents from every angle, fighting relentlessly for every bit of territory.

Argentine Ant Supercolonies

A few Argentine ant queens unintentionally sailed by ship from South America to Madeira and New Orleans. Here, the ants find the unfamiliar environment favorable due to the absence of deadly predators. Thriving, they quickly form “supercolonies” that cooperate instead of engaging in combat. This cooperative strategy is quite rare among the 16,000 ant species. In this case, the unusual cooperation behavior in these new locations is due to low genetic diversity in the ant population. The genetic pool limitations began with the relocation of only a few queens. Because 90% of Argentine ants kill 90% of their queens yearly, the low genetic diversity that enables supercolonies continues.

The supercolony on the West coast of the USA became a base for the tiny ants’ global conquest. Today, the Argentine ant inhabits six continents and many islands. From that one supercolony, sister-colony locations in California, Europe, Japan, New Zealand, and Australia grew. Eventually, it formed one massive intercontinental megacolony of Argentine ants.

This giant ant colony makes these ants the most prominent society on Earth, more numerous than humans.

But their success depletes the ecosystems they invade. The California Argentine ant invasion in Elk Grove illustrates their threat to biodiversity and propensity for eliminating native species. In their greed for more territory, the invading Argentine ants have overrun and replaced 90% of the native ant species, including several Californian carpenter ants. Although carpenter ant workers are giants, their colonies only have 3,000 and 6,000 individuals and stand no chance against an expanding supercolony of billions of Argentine ants.

Eliminating any native species has repercussions that reverberate. For example, the elimination of the California native and the diet of the coast-horned lizard (Phrynosoma coronatum) by Argentine ants has further imperiled this engendered lizard. In addition, the impact on the critical seed dispersal function of the native Western harvester ant they inflicted is profoundly negative.

Elk Grove Argentine ant workers attack enemies by wiping toxic chemicals on them. These chemicals irritate the enemy and mark them as a target for other Argentine ants. Upon the signal to attack, the Argentine ants swarm over their victims, clinging to them in groups and pulling apart their limbs. No matter how many in the swarm die ⁠— there are billions more. For them, attacking another ant species has remarkable benefits. After dismembering rival ants, the Argentine ants feed on their victims’ brood and take over their home and territory.

Unstoppable Ant Swarms Devour Everything

The Argentine ants’ enormous numbers allow them to hunt down and devour anything. The unstoppable swarm kills excessive masses of different insects. So many that, over time, some species disappear from the ants’ territory completely. Argentine ants do not care about working with the local flora and fauna. They consume them and move on to do it again.

And, human property, they will rudely make themselves at home there too. They forage in dumpster bowls of pet food and sneak into kitchens to claim leftovers. Not just our homes but also our gardens and fields are also viable Argentine ant hunting grounds.

But Argentine ants are not only killers but also farmers. They tend to hordes of aphids like a dairy farmer tends to cattle. See image above to view this practice. The aphids feed on plants and produce a sweet honeydew, which they trade with the ants for protection. Since the ants have no major enemy to fear in their new homes, the aphids thrive and ultimately kill the plants they live on. So, on top of being a significant disruption for the ecosystems they invade, they are also a vast pest for agriculture.

But there is a challenge to the rule of the Argentine ant in Elk Grove. Parts of the supercolonies have become their empires. A merciless civil war has broken out—for example, the Lake Hodges Supercolony and the Very Large Colony at war in San Diego County. The ant battle rages on for several years along a dynamic front line stretching for miles. And this war is not without casualties. An estimated 30 million ants die there each year.

On other fronts, an old acquaintance from the Parana River has risen from the shadows. Red imported fire ants unintentionally made it from their old home to the coast of Alabama. Not only are the red fire ants fierce fighters and able to deal with the Argentine ant, but they can also form super colonies themselves.

Imported Fire Ants Beat Argentine Ants

The old wars from their distant home roost in a new land to a foreign battle. In the southeastern US, the super colonies clashed fiercely. The Argentine ants found themselves losing to the fire ants. The fire ant workers are over twice the size of the Argentine ants and wield venom-injecting stingers. Even though the Argentine ants fought fiercely, the fire ants were too much for them.

After losing countless battles, the red imported fire ant obliterated the Argentine ant super colony, eliminating it from much of the southeastern US. That is one territory lost, but the Argentine ants will fight on. This impressive network of cooperating super colonies is the most significant success in their history.

And they’ll not give it up because of a minor defeat. They will stand their ground against any enemy that might arise. No matter if it’s on the Paraná River or one of the significant battlefields worldwide. And these ants are thriving in California.

Local Argentine Argentine Ant Control In Elk Grove

Inside any Elk Grove home, ants are pests. Whether it is an ant infestation of carpenter ants, black ants, or another local ant, homes are not the place for ants. Contact professional Elk Grove pest control company, Local pest solutions when you have ants. Our ant control services start with a free inspection of your home for ants and other common pests.

If you are dealing with ant infestations in your home, it is best to contact a pest control professional like us. When you partner with us, you can rest assured that we will provide quality home pest control services for ants. We use modern and eco-friendly pest control methods and ant control products around your home. Contact us today to learn more about implementing our pest control services covered by our 100% service guarantee for your home.

Argentine Ants Elk Grove pest control experts at Local Pest Control get rid of ants of any species. Please contact us for our ant control services today. Our exterminators near me and pest control companies near me are ready to help you today.