Appearance: Odorous ants are small, about 2.4 to 3.3 mm in size. dark brown or black in color with one pentiole on the leg of the abdomen. This ant has an uneven thorax. Their distinctive feature is the stench of rotten coconut which is emitted when their bodies are crushed.
Behavior: These ants make nests on walls or empty floors when indoors. Smelly ants enter the house in search of food, preferring sweets and meat. Kitchens and kitchen cabinets are common targets for these pests and they prefer to build their nests indoors near warm locations and close to moisture. Odorous ants also nest outside and can creep indoors through cracks in the foundation or openings around doors and windows.
Sign of Infestation: By findings of ant colonies and nests, and ant foraging behavior.
Diseases/Contamination: As the name implies, Odorous ant releases an unpleasant odor when destroyed. When they attack kitchen storage areas, pests have a tendency to contaminate food products. These ants can bite, but they don’t cause much pain. Home ants that smell nice are recognized as one of the ants most often found in the house.
Prevention: By reducing food sources that are potentially preferred by ants like food that contain sugar and carbohydrates, by closing any potential access, and by reducing humidity.
Reproduction: After mating, the ant queen will find a nest and start laying her eggs. The queen will provide care of the eggs, larvae, and pupae until the first worker ants appear. The workers start taking care of the colony and collected food. While the workers play a role in expanding the colony, the queen kept on laying eggs. The colonies are mature when wings are formed in males and females’ mate.