What Attracts Black Ants?

The last thing anyone wants to see when pulling a jar of honey from the kitchen cabinet is a mass of little black ants swarming around it. Ants are attracted to many substances, but the one thing they do have in common is an attraction to sweets. There are many kinds of black ants around the world, but here are four common species you are likely to encounter in or around your home.

  1. Odorous House Ant

    • One common ant found indoors due to its attraction to sweets is Tapinoma sessile, or the odorous house ant. It gets its name from the pungent, rotting fruit scent it releases when crushed. It grows to 1/16 to 1/8 inch long and is either glossy black or dark black-brown. It is found outdoors in low anthills or lawn waste. Indoors, it is seen around water pipes, as well as within the empty spaces of walls. Proteins also offer an attractive food source for this ant.

    Carpenter Ant

    • Camponotus spp., or the carpenter ant, often appears in the windowsills of houses. It eats wood and leaves behind a substance that looks like tiny wood shavings. The ant also is found in piles of wood, and in wooden fences and doors. Besides wood, sweets are another attractive food for this ant, which establishes colonies of up to 2,000 individuals. This ant grows to between 1/4 and 1/2 inch long and is either black, or red and black.

    Pavement Ant

    • Tetramorium caespitum, or pavement ants, get their name from the main location they inhabit. These ants are found in sidewalks, driveways, patios and in foundations, as well as around the lawn and near water. These small ants appear in shades of black to brown, and are between 1/8 and 3/4 inch long. Like many ants, sweets attract pavement ants, but they also eat proteins like meat or fungus, or grease.

    Argentine Ant

    • This little black ant originates from the South American countries of Brazil and Argentina, arriving in North America via shipping containers in the late 1800s. Sweets attract Linepithema humile, as well as fats and oils, eggs, meat and other protein-rich substances. It ranges in size from 1/16 to 1/4 inch and varies in color from brown to shiny black.