Greatly enlarged photo of an Odorous House Ant (Sugar Ant)

Sizing up ants

Ants as small in length as the thickness of 1 to 2 pennies:

Some species of ODOROUS HOUSE ANTS, and Little Black ants. (Yes, there is a little black ant species named: Little Black ants.) Little black ants nest in all the same areas as Odorous house ants and will be impossible to differentiate without a good hand lens or a microscope.  The control measures are the same. Both of these ants are about 1/16th of an inch long. Truly tiny.

Odorous House ants

Little black ants

Ants as small in length as the thickness of 2 to 3 pennies:

Acrobat ants may be dark brown to black and are noted for their heart shaped abdomens.

Argentine ants can be a shiny dark brown verging on black and are becoming more common in our area. Treatment of both of these ants may be limited to the exterior or possibly combined with a spot treatment of the interior. 

Cornfield ants can be dark brown to black, although they are usually a mix of browns and brownish reds, and are known for nesting in damp conditions see MOISTURE ANTS. 

PAVEMENT ANTS can be dark brown to black and are common around the joints of slabs - such as where driveways meet garages, coming up around garage and basement slabs, under walkways, and under pavers.

Some species of ODOROUS HOUSE ANTS are this big. These ants are about an 1/8th of an inch to just over an 1/8th.

If none of this information is terribly helpful, relax.  We can still help you get rid of little blacks ants, kill little black ants, and control little blacks ants - but the more you can tell us about where you see them and what they are dong - the better.

As series of pictures illustrating examples of pavement ant mounds and activity.

Ants whose length is equal to 3 to 6 pennies thick:

Some Velvety Tree ants species can be classified as tiny black ants but they can be as big as a quarter inch.  They range in color, and color schemes, from one specie that has a dark black abdomen with a red thorax and dark brown to black head - to very dark brown / black all over. 

Velvety Tree ants damage wood like Carpenter ants do.  If you have tiny to medium size ants that have trails at the top of your walls, you may have Velvety Tree ants. Carpenter ants start at this size, at least some species, and even the smallest workers of the larger species can be this size. Up to a 1/4 of an inch long. See below.

Carpenter ants.  Note the size range in workers. In a new nest, all workers may be classified as medium sized black ants.  As the colony matures there will be more of the larger sized workers. CARPENTER ANTS come in different sizes and colors. The ones with wings are reproductives.

Carpenter ant worker ants may be from 4 pennies to 9 pennies wide in length (1/4 to 1/2 inch long).  Carpenter ant female reproductives, that is, winged carpenter females, may be an inch long or all 17 pennies.  These future queens do lose their wings and are sometimes seen by homeowners. The most common big black ant is a carpenter ant.  If you are seeing ants that range in size but otherwise look the same, the same color and shape- you probably have Carpenter ants.   Note:  Carpenter ants come in different colors and sizes.  See CARPENTER ANTS for more info. 

If they are all exactly the same size, you may have some species of Thatching ants.  Thatching ants are much more aggressive than Carpenter ants.  Black bodied Thatching ants have red heads.

The best way to identify ants is by their physcal charachterisitics.  See the fairly smooth middle body section and the little bump between the middle section and the last body section?  Two things that together say Carpenter ant. 

Ant color is based on the same factors that govern hair color.  If you have more pigment the color will appear darker.  Couple that with the fact that there are almost always more than one species of each type of ant, like with flowers. The ant that you see as black, may be listed as dark brown in the guides or even dark reddish brown - it is probably still the same ant. The color of an ant is not the most reliable method of identifying it. For instance, the Carpenter ant species Vicinus has a red thorax (middle section) but sometimes it is so dark that the only way you can tell that it is red is by dropping it in rubbing alcohol and holding it up to a bright light. The fastest way to identify the most common local ants :

ANT IDENTIFICATION.

The links at the upper left hand side of this page will lead you to more info.  Safeguard is never more than a phone call away,  We are here to help you get rid of little blacks, control little black ants, and kill little blacks ants.